Distant Kindred
by lulgijak
Summary: A Scottish Werewolf finds herself among a very different kind of wolf pack after extrordinary circumstances plant her in Feudal Japan.
1. Chapter 1

_I always thought this would be a cool crossover to do even if it's gonna be kinda short. I like Wolfsbane, and this is my first time attempting to portray her. Practically anything can happen in the Marvel U, so coming up with a good way to incorporate her into Inuyahsa's world just took a little imagination: this story takes place with the young Rahne of the New Mutants in the middle of one of the team's inter-dimensional jaunts._

_I don't own a single character in this story, by the way!_

**The field of tall grass whipped** **vibrantly with the sturdy breeze that gusted past; aside from the wind the only sounds were insects and songbirds. **A red and white streak could be seen plowing a path through the growth only to pause abruptly at a certain spot, its nose lifted skyward. The strange boy cast purposeful amber eyes toward a large orchard at the field's edge and furrowed his brow thoughtfully before plunging onward to the other side and vanishing. Minutes more passed without incident.

From another direction a whirlwind materialized, instantly parting the grassy sea in a powerful gust as it blew across the path formerly taken by the long haired juvenile. In the cyclone's wake (following quite a bit behind) sprinted two more teens dressed in pelts and armor. The strange entourage shrank in the distance before completely vanishing over a hill. Afterward, all was peaceful once again.

Without warning, came the third remarkable occurrence within a few moments: the sky above where the wild looking youth had stood moments before split open. A bright pink portal of light materialized, dumping another equally bizarre, yet completely unrelated person onto the soil.

The bush warblers, meanwhile, continued their song without missing a note.

**Following a harrowing trip through** **the inter-dimensional vortex, the stranger found herself tossed into a heap onto hard damp ground.** Rahne Sinclair slowly pushed herself up while taking deep breaths to avoid being sick from the whirling sensation in her stomach.

The fourteen year old rubbed her barked chin; the violent landing aside, she noticed her surroundings were, at least, pleasant enough to look at. She found herself in the middle of a braw spring day on a grassy knoll that lacked only a picnic basket and blanket to complete a quaint scene. The girl's spirits lifted slightly at the welcomed sight of unspoiled nature – such a contrast from the desolate Limboian landscape she'd just left behind.

_Limbo_!

Rahne bolted upright only to fall over again as she hadn't yet regained her balance. Where were her team mates? Scanning the area for any more of Illyana's highly conspicuous teleportation discs, she spotted nothing and no one. The demon sorceress had once again unintentionally scattered the eight of them throughout the expanse of time and space; _'here'_ could be practically anywhere – not to mention any_when_!

"Danni? Sam? Xi'an…" she tried futilely. The others were all most likely in the same predicament as she: stranded in alien worlds and times – possibly even dangerous ones!

"An' all thanks to that gallus witch," muttered Rahne in her Scottish burr only to guiltily retract the accusation as soon as it passed her lips. She knew it wasn't Magik's fault – the other girl had done the only thing she could to protect them from Warlock's murderous father, Magus, who would certainly have destroyed them all by now if it weren't for the young Russian's powers. Now, hopefully, the sorceress was cleaver enough to find and retrieve everyone once again and return them back home.

Fervently praying that she and her friends would soon be safely reunited, Rahne presently decided to make tracks in the hopes of discovering more about the location she'd just been dropped into. Fortunately, she _did _have somewhat of a home advantage among her new surroundings: the young metamorph immediately decided to put her skills into good use.

Starting off at a brisk stride, the teenager's body instinctively began a fluid, almost imperceptible transformation: arms lengthened and back bent forward even as the short red hair atop her head grew into a wild auburn mane that intermingled with the thickening brown fur hiding her increasingly animalistic form. Within seconds, a full-fledged wolf loped for the covering of the nearby forest.

Safe within her adopted shape, she saw her situation with new clarity as the child felt all human anxiety waft away on the rushing wind. Her primal mind understood the gravity of the situation broken down into bestial simplicity: _find a safe place– watch and wait. _

She skirted the border of the woods resolutely for some distance as her sensitive nose simultaneously began picking up on several different scents: a dog had recently passed by – or maybe something similar to a dog – it smelled a little human and a little… something else. Humans were also nearby, the wolf happily realized, catching the downward wind; that most likely meant civilization and answers. Rahne sped up in excitement to find the source of the familiar odor. She could already hear voices in the distance.

**Sango looked with sympathy** **and some apprehension at her fellow female traveling companion.** Kagome walked a little ahead, her posture stiff and unapproachable. Even Shippo kept his distance, opting for the demon slayer's shoulder for a change.

"Inuyasha certainly acts reckless sometimes," the first girl whispered aside to Miroku who strolled next to her.

"Mmm," concurred the monk, his eyes also locked on the young woman in front of them, "it's very disgraceful the way he's so unfaithful to Kagome, always chasing after Kikiyo the way he does."

"So, are you saying he should stop toying with Kagome's heart and just settle for one girl," asked the demon slayer with a certain edge to her words.

"Exactly," intoned the holy man, somehow missing the landmine quality in Sango's deceptively innocent inquiry.

Cringing, the savvy Shippo ducked for cover under _Hiratsu_.

"…And that a man like that should have some sense knocked into him," Sango continued in an increasingly dangerous tone.

"I…guess," began Miroku as a familiar foreboding at last crept into him. He turned warily to the girl at his side who simultaneously gave him a solid crack over the head with her bone weapon.

"You know," she smiled icily, "for once we agree on something, Monk."

The four and Kirara found a rocky niche along the pass and stopped to rest, with Miroku still nursing his battered skull.

Kirara, in her large cat form, sniffed the air suspiciously and made a low grunting noise; the others, however, paid her no attention.

**From where she hid, Rahne was amazed to realize that not only were these people speaking Japanese, but she could understand what they were saying!** She'd never studied nor spoken the language a day in her life, so how could such a thing be possible? So bothered by the fact was the young lupine that she shifted into a transitional wolf/human form in order to better ponder the puzzle.

With the full return of her human intellect, the werewolf suddenly remembered a day some months ago when she'd been quietly studying in her room:

Having been raised a ward of the church by the fanatical Reverend Craig, virtually all her earliest memories involved the Bible in some way – mostly negative. Despite the condemning minister's best efforts to beat his charge down with doctrine, Rahne still clung to her faith as her dearest comfort. Craig hadn't needed to force feed her religion, she believed regardless – it was the only thing that had made her loveless childhood, before coming to the School for Gifted Youngsters, bearable.

One day, as it happened, Rahne sat curled up in her daily devotional; the child soon noticed a familiar footnote below the passage she read. She'd seen similar notes before, and usually disregarded them – but, something piqued her curiosity as she decided to seek the linguistic knowledge of a certain team mate.

"Well ancient Hebrew can be a very vague language," Doug Ramsey (also know as Cypher) had eagerly informed the redhead. He was obviously flattered to be consulted by one of his fellow New Mutants – ever insecure over the usefulness of his non-physical abilities. "One word often has many meanings…"

The boy had gone on to explain about Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and all the different manuscripts compiled to write her King James Version. Rahne listened raptly – having never received any kind of procedural lessons on how the Bible, which she'd always taken as a whole, came into being. The conversation, however, soon turned to religion in general. Doug informed her that he wanted to read the Koran in Arabic as soon as he was able to obtain a copy, and how he'd recently been studying Shinto.

"You know, you might like the writings of the _Kojiki_, Rahne," her friend offered, "they're Japanese creation myths; there's also some stuff in it similar to Scottish culture."

The girl smiled appreciatively; though somewhat uneasy about learning 'heathen' beliefs, she did enjoy stories. Doug's books, unfortunately, were printed in their native language – nevertheless, the boy had an idea. Approaching Professor Xavier, the two enlisted the obliging headmaster to telepathically transfer Cypher's understanding of Japanese to Wolfsbane in much the same way he'd taught Illyana English.

"So tha's why I can understand them," the wolf-girl murmured presently, "an' this means that, at least I'm still on earth!"

Interrupting her ruminations, a sudden bestial presence made itself known to Rahne. The lupine spun to the left where the great cat creature accompanying the travelers now shared the cliff ledge next to her – its fangs bared and red eyes glittering ominously.

"Kirara! What do you see up there," called the girl with the huge boomerang from the pass below. Her companions also stood and readied themselves for a confrontation.

Feeling cornered and suddenly panicked, the young shape-shifter immediately reverted back to full wolf form and took off with her tail between her legs.

She ran deep into the forest without stopping until she was sure no one was pursuing her.

**Ginta and Hakkaku, their pointless attempt to keep up with Kouga abandoned, now plodded wearily along to at last collapse in a pile on the ground.**

"It's no use," sighed Ginta, "we'll never catch that guy, and I'm starving!"

Hakkaku turned to his pack brother, "I wonder what Naraku is cooking up this time."

"Whatever it is, I'm worried about Kouga."

"Yeah," Ginta managed to shove the other wolf off him and stood trying to catch his breath, "maybe he'll be lucky and meet up with Kagome-_neesan_ and Inuyasha; I'm sure that if Kagura is still around these parts they've probably noticed her by now."

Both siblings attempted to pacify themselves with these assurances as following after their leader was now impossible.

Anytime the pair found themselves absent from Kouga's side during perilous circumstances was cause for anxiety: though noted for his strength, courage, and (of course) speed – the young warrior was also known as being determinedly overconfident. His two wolf lieutenants were seldom a match for the mighty demons they encountered, however, what they lacked in combat skills they made up for with moral support and simply acting as the voices of reason for their headstrong chief.

"Hey, let's go hunting," suggested Ginta to change the subject, and because he really was hungry.

Hakkaku looked almost wistfully toward a distant village, "Well you know Kouga said we can't eat humans anymore…"

"But we can still hunt for other things," dismissed the other, "why don't we call some wolves together and take down some big prey?"

"Okay, sounds like a plan!"

The two demons proceeded to the woods, calling out for their canine brethren. Almost immediately wolves began to howl back in reply. Ginta and Hakkaku frowned thoughtfully at each other – some sort of territory dispute seemed to be taking place; a roving wolf had unwittingly stumbled into someone else's hunting grounds and was now receiving a harsh lesson in predatory etiquette.

Without a word, the duo eagerly sprinted off to witness the proceedings.

A russet colored adolescent (judging by her size) leapt away in terror from the large gray snapping at her flanks. Another creamy animal bit at the intruder's neck while three others, snarling, brought up the rear.

The spectators shared a grin, pleased they'd arrived just as things were getting exciting.

Suddenly, the pursuit took an unexpected turn. The antagonized she-wolf, barely managing to outrun her irate assailants, abruptly wheeled back on them. With an undetectably fluid motion, her swiping paw became a set of claws which tore across the large gray's snout. With the first wolf knocked practically for a loop, two others immediately leapt onto the creature that reared up on hind legs and flung them off.

Now it was the russet's turn to growl menacingly as she towered over her would be attackers. She snatched one beast by the lower jaw as it dove at her, slamming it to the ground again with a sickening snap of bone. The final wolf, taking advantage of her crouched position, went for the monster's jugular. The two rolled one over the other a couple times, each fighting for the upper hand until the humanoid, yanking the wolf back by the nape, viciously sank her own fangs into the animal's throat. Blood sprayed the brownish gray fur as the canine yelped once, and then went limp.

The skirmish decidedly over: those of the wolves that could still move hastily retreated into the forest as fast as their injured limbs could carry them.

Hakkaku and Ginta, matching gapes plastered on their faces, stared unblinkingly at the ragged and panting changeling before them. The yellow-green eyes suddenly noticed them for the first time.

"Hey, who are you," marveled Hakkaku.

The hybrid's mouth slowly widened to form a reply, before her knees buckled and she instead crumpled to the ground.

Rushing over, the wolf demons started in surprise to behold a now completely un-lupine, blood-streaked _human_ girl passed out on the forest floor.

_If you actually made it to the end of this chapter I would be soooo grateful for a review! Thanks._


	2. Chapter 2

**Rahne was vaguely aware she was having a nightmare; however this information scarcely comforted her.** The dream was a reoccurring one, though it'd been some months since she'd last had it: as a wolf she was running as hard and fast as her four legs could pump while, all around, she heard/smelled/felt the irate mob that pursued her across the craggy Highlands with fiery torches.

"_Kill it, burn it; send the devil-spawn to hell_," thundered Reverend Craig hoarsely over the roaring throng. Suddenly the bullet hit, sending her toppling down, down, down…

Wolfsbane jolted awake, and strained momentarily to make sense of the strange surroundings before her memory sluggishly returned. She placed a hand on the shallow lacerations of her neck – they were already on the mend thanks to her mild healing factor.

Instead of finding herself sprawled where she fell, Rahne saw that she'd been moved into a thicket. She suddenly remembered the wild looking young men who she'd seen before loosing consciousness – had they relocated her to this place?

Getting carefully to her feet, the girl heard male voices carrying through the trees and quickly ducked back down.

"…not bad if I do say so myself," one of the rapidly approaching dialoguers was saying.

"Yeah, yeah…"

Rahne deliberated on weather or not to shift into wolf form even as the footsteps stopped abruptly at her hideout and a leather-banded arm pushed aside the shrubbery to reveal the same two lads whom she'd last seen.

"So you are awake," said the one with a patch of black in the middle of his grayish-lavender hair. Behind him stood the other with a white Mohawk, what looked like a deer hoisted over one shoulder.

"Er – yes, thank you," said the girl, not really certain _why_ she'd just thanked him; "did y'put me here?"

'Patch' nodded, "Yeah, just to make sure nobody came around to finish you off."

"Thank you," she reiterated, feeling foolish.

"If you're hungry you're welcome to eat with us," added 'Mohawk', "anyone who can hold their own so well against that many opponents is worthy company."

Genuinely surprised by the friendliness of the savage-looking twosome and not really wanting to be alone anymore, Rahne readily accepted.

Her appetite all but disappeared, however, as soon as her new companions proceeded to tear into their raw kill with tooth and nail. Their eating habits aside, there was something very strange about them she couldn't quite place, something decidedly inhuman – still they seemed affable enough – at the moment.

After a few minutes of gorging, the mohawked one looked up expectantly, inviting her to partake.

"D'ye ever cook the meat," she winced, accepting a bloody chunk of hide.

The two exchanged glances before shrugging at her, "Sure, if you want."

**Rahne chewed gratefully on her substantial, if somewhat plain meal and tried to ignore the stares she received from across the dying camp fire.** She couldn't hear what they were whispering about from where she sat, but she felt her face redden with embarrassment nonetheless. Could it be they'd already decided they didn't much like her after all?

"So, are you a demon slayer," the one with the patch questioned abruptly.

"What kind of magic do you use," pressed the other.

Of all the accusations she'd braced herself against, the young Scot was scarcely prepared for the current angle of interrogation; she nearly choked on her venison.

"Wha'? Magic – a-a _demon_ slayer, me!"

The strange young men exchanged glances before looking back at her, "well, you _do_ kind of dress like that demon slayer who travels with Kagome…Sango I think her name is," 'Patch' informed her.

The girl stared down at her standard black and yellow costume composed of instable molecules that transformed into a collar whenever she morphed into any advanced lupine form. She was utterly at a loss to grasp what they were talking about, and wasn't sure she wanted to.

"I dinnae ken who tha' is," she set her meat aside and eyed them uneasily, "an' I certainly dinnae ken any magic – ah'mno witch!"

Neither one appeared convinced by her vehement denial; fortunately, they didn't seem particularly concerned about pressing the matter further.

"Well, Kagome is our boss's woman," put in 'Mohawk' helpfully. Rahne noticed, however, that his statement lacked conviction, as though he were merely repeating some tired rumor. "She's a priestess from the future."

"The future y'say; what year is it," the girl asked anxiously.

Both lads shrugged in unison, neither appearing to understand what she meant.

The thought suddenly occurred to the mutant how rude she must appear having not even introduced herself yet, "Och, forgive my manners! M'name is Rahne Sinclair, bytheway."

"Your name is R-Rainsinclair-Bythewee," slurred one of the youths with commendable effort.

The redhead couldn't hold back a laugh – apparently some Scottish phrases simply didn't translate into Japanese, "Nae, just call me Rahne!"

'Patch' gestured toward himself, "I'm Ginta."

"And I'm Hakkaku," added his mohawked companion, "We're wolf demons."

Rahne suddenly felt as if she might faint again: _demons_ – she couldn't go among _demons_! Had those wolves actually killed her? Had she gone to hell just as Reverend Craig said she would? She knew there was something not altogether right about those two – but _still _they they didn't look like any demons she'd ever seen before -and she'd seen plenty while in Limbo. Maybe Japanese demons were different…

Meanwhile, the girl found she'd unintentionally shifted into her transitional form while Hakkaku and Ginta eyed her apprehensively.

"Are you okay, Rahne-san?"

The werewolf in question stared back – what did they want with her? Her enhanced senses were now keenly focused on the pelt-adorned creatures across from her. Altered as she was, she could see beyond her normal human sight into the infrared spectrum. The heat patterns radiating from the pair revealed no ill-will or secret agendas; likewise, the only emotions she smelled from them were faint concern and confusion. Could these mild-mannered boys really be the demons they claimed to be? Well, they _weren't_ human – she could smell that for certain now – but demons were such evil, wicked, nasty things!

An image of Illyana popped unbidden into her mind – a cloven-hoofed, devil-horned, Soul Sword wielding Darkchylde, cackling hideously – and she was only _half_ demon!

'_Aye, an' _ye're_ only a blood-thirsty, heathen monstrosity in good company'_, a voice in her head mocked. Rahne promptly rebuked the capricious thought which reluctantly withered away; Illyana wasn't _entirely _evil and neither was she! But what good could possibly come from associating with these demons – was she unfair to villainize such creatures and all of their kind?

Meanwhile, both _youkai _in question were standing and staring at her.

"Relax, we don't want to attack you," soothed Hakkaku slowly, "you haven't done anything to us…" an unspoken 'yet' hung faintly in the air.

She regretfully realized her thoughts must be stamped plainly on her face – or maybe, like her, they could also smell emotions.

The wolf-girl took a steadying breath; perhaps she'd simply misunderstood. With the throaty growl of her lupine form she calmly asked, "what exactly d'ye mean when ye say ye're 'demons'?"

**Mouths ajar, the siblings merely gawped at the changeling as if she'd just asked them what kind of air they breathed. **

"Okay, so maybe you were wrong about her being a demon slayer," muttered Hakkaku.

Ginta opened his mouth to reply, but shut it again as a new concept dawned on him. He looked incredulously at the strange girl, "don't you even know what a demon is?"

"I do," she shot back almost defensively, and then lowering her voice added, "tha's the problem."

"Look," placated Ginta, "I don't know what kind of experiences you've had with demons in the past, but not _all_ of them are hostile to humans;" he discreetly failed to mention the village raids and child-devouring formerly prevalent among his own tribe.

The girl's elongated muzzle scrunched in surprise and suspicion at the moot statement, but she appeared to consider his words.

"Now what about you," countered Hakkaku, "you're human right?" At her affirming nod he continued, "And you say you're not a witch – so how do you become a wolf or look and dress the way you do?"

"You must be from the Continent," Ginta concluded sagely, both sets of eyes widened in awe at the girl.

"Well, I'm from _a_ continent…"

**Rahne explained her situation and powers to the best of her ability.** Though the two demons had a little trouble getting their minds around certain concepts, like mutants and inter-dimensional time travel (but then, admittedly, so did the Scottish girl at times) they basically caught the gist.

"An' that's how I came t' be here in the first place; I dinnae have any way of gettin' back other than th' way I came,"the teenager let out a frustrated sigh,"_Och_, I only wisht I knew if my friends were okay!"

"Wow, sounds tough," Hakkaku rubbed the back of his neck "wish there were some way we could help."

"Maybe…," began his brother tentatively, both sets of eyes traveled curiously to Kouga's right hand man.

"Well," pressed his counterpart when the other failed to continue.

Ginta frowned and tapped his chin, "I was just wondering if maybe Kagome would know what to do. She _does_ come and go from her own present all the time, after all" he added at the quizzical look from his fellow demon.

"Hmm, you have a point," Hakkaku conceded.

_Kagome_: why did that name sound so familiar? A memory of the conversation she'd recently overheard suddenly clicked in Wolfsbane's mind and she came over to crouch excitedly beside the almost equally feral-looking young men, "This Kagome: is she by any chance a lass 'bout my age an' wi' a white blouse an' a green skirt?"

"Uh yeah, that sounds like her – she also carries a bow and arrows."

"Aye, I think I've seen her!"

The wolf siblings gaped back, "_where_," they simultaneously demanded.

"Nae too far from here; she was with two – no _three_ others – another girl, a man with a strange staff, an' also a wee lad. Oh, an' thir was a frightful beast wi' 'em too."

"You must mean Inuyasha: dog-eared half-demonwith a huge sword?"

"Er – nae," answered Rahne, shuddering slightly at the description, "it looked t'be some sort of cat."

"Yeah, that's still got to be Kagome."

"An' ye say she simply travels through time as she pleases?"

"Yeah. At least, it sure seems that way."

The girl nearly forgot about Hakkaku's being a terrible demon and grabbed his lean arm in excitement; only just stopping herself, she nevertheless leaned as close as she dared toward the startled immortal, "d'ye honestly ken that she could help me?"

She watched with wonderment as the mohawked demon inexplicably flinched away, "uh, maybe."

**Ginta and Hakkaku sprinted through the dense foliage; at their side, a reddish wolf also maintaining a brisk pace.** Soon the small pack had neared a clearing and a steep incline at which they abruptly skidded to a halt and peered down from.

Kagome sat doling out the evening meal from her knapsack, some dumplings, tuna _sashimi_, and beanie-weenie (being in a hurry – she'd grabbed anything convenient). As usual, though, her companions appeared almost ridiculously pleased over the basic victuals, gobbling voraciously.

Moodily, she turned to glance down the path in the direction Inuyasha had taken hours earlier. A sharp noise from above caught her attention – she glanced up taking it to be the hanyou only to meet the gazes of Kouga's two lieutenants accompanied by a familiar rusty-coated wolf.

_Another chapter completed. Things should get verra interesting once Inu and Kouga finally enter the scene!_

_Thanks for the reviews so far, Hotredhead and Sunshine, glad you're liking it!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Shortly after the unexpected arrival** of the wolves, the assorted demons and humans once again gathered around Kagome's thinly spread feast to discuss the plight of the tribe's newest cohort. The hostess generously handed her last cup of Ramen Noodles over to Hakkaku (If Inuyasha got hungry he could just get his own food). Only too happy for the distraction from her hanyou troubles, she gave her full attention to the three guests, particularly the young werewolf.

Rahne, fully human in the meantime, had taken an instant liking to Ginta and Hakkaku's friends – Kagome especially: it was reassuring to see someone from the modern age mingling so comfortably among such mythological people and surroundings.

Besides Kagome, she'd also met Sango – the girl whose demon-slaying outfit had been rather accurately compared to the Scot's own training uniform. Sango was apparently close in age to Kagome, but somehow possessed an air of maturity beyond her years. Despite her pleasant, reticent nature, Rahne's lupine senses detected an undertone of melancholy and determination churning below the surface. She privately guessed that the other girl had recently been through a great deal of tragedy in her life.

Next to Sango sat Miroku, a handsome lad who was (apparently) a monk. The red head, however, found the concept, even if he seemed like a genuinely kindhearted person, difficult to swallow. His preoccupation with female anatomy– especially Sango's – was quite obvious therefore Rahne prudently kept her distance. On the other hand, his flirtatious and charismatic nature reminded her fondly of Roberto therefore she decided not to judge him too harshly.

Finally, there were Shippo and Kirara who (apart from Inuyasha, the absent member of the party) composed the demon portion for the six travelers. Shippo, in the brief time Rahne had been around him, had sorely challenged all her previous notions of what a demon was supposed to be like. First of all, he was adorable. The small boy sat next to her and immediately began barraging her with questions. He explained to her that he was a fox while formally introducing her to Kirara who, no longer in defense mode, transformed into a miniature version of herself – much more to Rahne's liking.

"So you're from New York," asked Kagome with growing interest, "and the same era as me?"

The other girl nodded with equal enthusiasm, "I was wonderin' if ye knew of a way for me tae return there, an' if so, would ye please tell it tae me?" Her green eyes locked hopefully with Kagome's.

The Tokyo girl sadly shook her head, "sorry, but you couldn't travel home the way I do – only Inuyasha and I can use the bone-eater's well."

Her optimism crushed, Rahne suddenly looked so dejected that Shippo hopped onto her shoulder and patted her reassuringly with his tiny hand, "don't feel too bad, there must be some other way to get you back."

"Meanwhile, you could stay with us; I doubt Kouga would mind," Hakkaku generously offered.

Rahne managed as small but grateful smile. She silently wondered if she'd ever see home again.

"So where is Kouga, you guys," asked Kagome.

Ginta looked up from his rice and shrugged, "we lost him a long time ago; he caught Kagura's scent and took off to find Naraku."

"Yeah," agreed his brother, "we're starting to get worried."

"I wonder if Inuyasha noticed anything out of the ordinary," mused Sango.

"If he had he would have returned and told us," Miroku pointed out.

Kagome shook her ahead tersely, "I doubt Inuyasha would notice anything unless it was directly in the path of Kikiyou."

Sango and Miroku exchanged knowing glances as the school girl slowly gave them an apologetic smile. "Sorry guys; I don't mean to have such a sour attitude – I just hope he gets back soon."

"You know, you should watch out for Inuyasha," Shippo warned Rahne, "he steals food; the only reason we keep him around is because he makes a pretty good guard dog."

"Speak freely while said 'guard dog' isn't around to throttle you," laughed the monk.

The small fox stuck out his tongue.

"P'rhapse he's on his way back now," the Scot suggested to the anxious Kagome.

"Yeah probably," agreed the first girl, forcing a smile.

**After the meal, Ginta and** Hakakku decided to remain with Kagome's group for a little while longer until their leader's return. The choice suited Rahne fine, even if she were stranded in a strange world indefinitely, she was happy to at least have stumbled upon so many new friends – and so quickly.

Absorbed in her own thoughts, the young girl quietly slipped away to be alone. She felt the strong need to escape reality through her preferred outlet – becoming the wolf.

She found even her heaviest burdens always lifted away with the force of the wind against her coppery pelt. Fully transformed she darted through tall grass until, without entirely intending to, she reached the spot where she'd first arrived. Absently sniffing the air, she looked up as if expecting to see a light disk appear at any minute and her friends to take her back home.

The scent of several stale trails mingled in her nostrils: an almost (but not quite) human smell heading in one direction and one that was greatly similar to Ginta or Hakkaku's aroma intersecting the first path. Both distinctive trails carried a certain canine quality that intrigued the young wolf and she considered following one of them. However, as she stood trying to decide, the crisp noise of grass under swift feet pricked her sensitive ears; something was approaching.

Rahne whipped around in time to descry the great fluffy body of Kirara gliding toward her position. The massive cat halted suddenly and, once again, studied the other animal with piercing crimson eyes, her double tails swiping in momentary agitation. Feet firmly planted, the two stood off for a minute more, the smaller of the two at last lowering her head and shoulders in a meaningful bow.

Understanding the gesture, the cat uttered a guttural noise in reply and immediately leapt toward the brownish creature, fire licking the pads of her feet as she went. She touched down beside the werewolf who quickly darted away. The feline gave chase and the two were soon romping and darting through the tall grass.

Kirara eventually cut her companion off with the swipe of a heavy paw, sending her topling. Fangs able to rend the wolf's head from her body gently nipped the other's neck. The canine, meanwhile, rolled onto her back in surrender while enthusiastically gnawing on the big cat's leg. Kirara, finally having enough, merely dropped her body heavily to the ground and wrapped her forelegs around her small cohort like a mother calming a rowdy cub. Gradually, the young wolf ceased her playful struggle and settled against the thick, creamy-colored pelt: it was nice to be able to unwind in her animal form with another kindred spirit.

The serene moment was soon disrupted with the arrival of another creature. Kirara lifted her head, suddenly alert, but unalarmed; she uttered a brief greeting to the approaching figure. Rahne, sensing her friend's change of attitude, also looked up in drowsy curiosity at the newcomer.

"Hey, Kirara," murmured the silvery-haired boy, studying the pair, "who's your new friend…A wolf, eh?"

Without warning the animal in question got up and stood on its hind legs before him. "Hello, m'name's Rahne Sinclair," she affably growled.

"_Huah_," Inuyasha grunted in surprise – falling gracelessly on his backside.

A halfway human Rahne leaned over in concern, "Are ye quite alright?"

The hanyou immediately stood up, attempting to recover from his embarrassing spill; "Who're you – _what_ are you," he snapped, a little more harshly than he'd intended.

"Like Ah said, am Rahne," the taken-aback changeling meekly replied, "Who're ye?" She looked him over as realization dawned, "Wait, yuir Inuyasha, aren't ye?"

The boy frowned; "y-eees," he replied slowly, "how do you know me?"

"Yuir friends told me aboot ye – they said you're a half-demon an' that you're verra brave an' strong. Ah'm pleased t'make yuir acquaintance." The beastial girl attempted a curtsey that looked about as fitting as a wolverine wearing pearl earrings.

Inuyasha's lips parted, but before he could respond a mocking voice from nearby cut him off. "'Brave and strong' – _that _dog-turd? What a joke!"

Into the clearing abruptly strode an arrogant-looking young man dressed in the same fashion as Ginta and Hakkakku. He favored the first male with a smirk which the hanyou returned with an indignant growl, "what are you skulking around here for ya wimpy wolf, looking to get your tail whipped again?"

"As if you could catch me;" the two glared each other down, mere centimeters from one another's faces. "Actually, I thought I might check in on Kagome and see how she's doing; seems I can't depend on a worthless mutt like you to actually stick around and protect her while Naraku is roaming around these parts."

"Shaddup!" snarled an incensed Inuyasha. "If Naraku was anywhere nearby I would know, and _I_ take better care of Kagome than you ever could – you pathetic waste of good jewel shards!"

The wolf demon's reply dripped with disdain, "is that why you reek of that dead woman's stench, then?"

Rahne felt the half-demon flinch from the accusation like a stout punch to the stomach. Before long, she anticipated words would be exchanged for real blows. She hesitated to come between the dangerous pair; still the idea of them possibly ripping each other apart in front of her was almost more distressing.

Fortunately, help arrived just then in the form of a petite school girl. Kagome, after hearing the ruckus, had left the group to investigate. She now walked determinedly up to the would-be combatants, "Inuyasha…"

The owner of the name glanced irritably in her direction, "don't bother me now, Kagome – I'm about to put this waste of blood out of his mis-"

"Sit!"

The hanyou vehemently complied. Rahne watched stunned as the silver-haired boy plowed face first into the ground hard enough to shake the earth. Clods of dirt flew into the air from the impact, creating an impressive crater around Inuyasha's prone body.

"Hello, Kouga," the girl sighed tiredly after a pause. She then turned back in the direction of the camp, leaving all three gawking silently after her.

**The wolf chieftain, his lieutenants and the young** metamorph sat together in front of the fire; Hakkaku and Ginta described their first encounter with Rahne to Kouga.

"Well, sounds like you could keep up with us and take care of yourself," the leader studied the furry girl with his pale eyes and shrugged, "but the fact is you're still not one of us and you never will be – you're a human – I think. You should either go stay among humans or find a place with a wolf pack. Either way, at least you've got options."

"But, Kouga, what about _Neesan_?" protested a dismayed Hakkaku, gesturing toward Kagome who sat slightly apart, watching the proceedings with Sango and Miroku. (Far on the outskirts of the camp, Inuyasha nursed his wounded ego in a tall tree. Meanwhile, Both Shippo and Kirara had found a warm spot near the fireside and slept in blissful oblivion to the dramas taking place around them.) "She's a human, and you have no problem with her – not even as a mate."

Kouga frowned dismissively, "Kagome's different."

"So is Rahne-san – and it's only temporary."

"I don't care; it sounds to me like she's going to be here for a long time. She'd better find a place of her own and get comfortable."

"You're welcome to stay with us," offered Kagome, coming over to the Scot.

"Um, of course, I wouldn't have a problem if you wanted to visit or hunt on our land," the wolf leader quickly added at the human girl's generosity. He was instantly rewarded with one of Kagome's smiles.

Rahne looked from the demon trio to the Japanese girl, her eyes shining in gratitude. "I dinnae know what to say," she suddenly threw her arms around the surprised Kagome, "thank ye."

**As the wolf tribe prepared to leave, Hakkaku** and Ginta bid their new friend goodbye, promising to visit soon; the others began tuning in shortly afterward. Wolfsbane hastily put the finishing touches on a letter to Magneto before following suit. She had no clue how to best explain her situation in writing and even less certainty that it would reach the headmaster, but it was the best idea she could come up with. Folding the piece of loose leaf, she scribbled an address on the back and went to find Kagome.

The girl was awake and standing with Inuyasha beside a well, her book satchel slung over her shoulder. The boy, meanwhile, squatted obstructively on the wooden structure's ledge wearing a frustrated scowl.

"I have to go now – I have my own life, you know, I can't spend all my time helping you hunt jewel shards!"

"Well, if you hadn't stupidly shattered the jewel to begin with, then I wouldn't even need you," spat the hanyou bitterly.

Rahne thought she heard a tremor in Kagome's voice, "get out of the way, Inuyasha. Please, I can't take this right now – I don't want to see you for a while."

The boy recoiled slightly as if stung, "but I – ," he broke off, his head suddenly snapping in the intruder's direction as he noticed Rahne for the first time.

"I'm sorry," blurted the redhead, "I didnae mean t'interrupt – I just wanted to give this to you, Kagome." She held out her letter along with the pen she'd borrowed to write it.

"Could ye post this f'r me; I huvny clue if it'll do any good," she went on as the older girl accepted the paper, "far as I ken we may be from completely different dimensions, but mebbe it'll reach someone who can help me."

"Yes, of course," agreed the first, she gave Rahne a reassuring hug and headed once again to the mouth of the well.

"Kagome?"

"Huh?"

"Please don't stay gone too long," said the Scottish teen.

The first girl smiled warmly, "take care, Rahne." With a final wave, she leapt through the portal and disappeared.

Wolfsbane looked around once again, but Inuyasha had also vanished.


	4. Chapter 4

"**So, do we still plan to continue searching for Kagura,"** asked Sango as the demon slayer meaningfully polished her weapon of trade by the water side.

With his robes tucked up, immersed to the calves, Miroku hunkered over the stream in an attempt to catch breakfast, "Somehow I doubt we'll have to do much searching if Kagura wishes to cause trouble."

The young woman smirked slightly at his antics; though he wasn't very skilled at it, the monk still preferred catching fish after Inuyasha's style than with a pole. Setting aside the _Hiraikotsu_, she crossed to the edge of the stream and stood behind him.

Miroku looked back a bit nonplussed, "What are you doing?" He suddenly flinched as a bone spear swooped over his head and jutted straight into the gurgling water in front of him.

His companion waded over, casually tugging her projectile free – a large trout flopped on the end. "I just prefer not to wait till afternoon for my breakfast," she smiled as she strode back to shore with the catch.

Miroku scowled after her in annoyance before turning all determination back to his own hunt. Minutes more passed before the young monk was again distracted – this time by three new arrivals.

Shippo tumbled through the brush as a huge pink bubble, giggling loudly. Close behind him, large Kirara and reddish wolf leapt after. The large rosy orb bounced directly into the water beside the monk, splashing him liberally.

"Do you mind," asked the young man in a deceptively calm voice, a vein throbbing on his temple, "You're. Scaring. My. Fish."

Instantly Shippo returned to normal with a loud pop and landed on his friend's wet shoulder, "What does it matter – Kirara just caught plenty for all of us; we just came to let you know."

Miroku, looking a bit disappointed, waded back to shore and followed the others to breakfast.

"So where's Inuyasha," the young fox dared to ask once he'd gobbled down the last of his fish, "still sulking?"

Sango rolled her eyes in reply, "in typical Inuyasha fashion; at least he's not here griping at the rest of us."

"It just means that Kagome will stay gone longer because he won't admit he's an idiot," pouted Shippo.

No one replied, but each mulled the idea over in his or her respective head, pondering the possible consequences of such a scenario. Nobody believed their friend gone forever, but who knew how much 'alone time' she might take in order to properly punish the hanyou.

**Rahne found Inuyasha roosting in a large** tree at the base of which sat the well Kagome used to return home two nights ago – it was the first she'd seen of him since that evening. Returning to a human, the young teen walked to the massive trunk and gazed up at the half-demon. The boy seemed completely unaware of her presence as he stared moodily into space.

"Ye _could_ go and make up with her," the red-haired girl suggested upward in a loud, clear brogue.

The silver head jerked at this; recognizing Rahne he immediately shot her an irritable look. "Feh, she can come and make up with _me_," he dismissed, turning his body away from her on his limb.

"Ach! Ye great numpty," she snarled up at him.

The boy's dog ears pricked up, baffled by the foreign girl's insult. He leapt gracefully down, landing inches from her with a scowl identical to her own. "What did you just –"

"What's the matter with ye – you're behavin' like a spoiled bairn," she cut him off – further closing the gap between them, forcing Inuyasha to lean away, "especially since – as far as I ken – this is yuir fault!"

"_Shaddup_," the boy drew himself back up to full height and roared down at her, "Nothing's my fault – you don't even know what you're talking about!" He spun around and, in a huff, started marching away.

"If it's true that ye ran off tae yuir old girl friend then what else would you call it," she countered to his back.

His yellow eyes were on her in a heartbeat threatening to burn a hole through her. "Yeah, and what business is it of yours?"

Taken aback, Rahne cast her own eyes down uncertainly while she slowly wound her finger round a long blade of grass. She hadn't intended to attack the boy when she'd first arrived – but once again her passions had gotten ahead of her better of judgement. Sparing him an apologetic glance, she attempted a new approach to the subject.

"I've just seen how miserable ye two are, an' I know how badly y'want t'be together – 'tis a shame to waste time stayin' as crabbit as you are."

Now it was Inuyasha's turn to look uncomfortable, increasing Rahne's puzzlement. "Wait, y'are_ in love_ with Kagome, aren't ye?"

The half-demon's face suddenly turned as red as the Scottish girl's hair. Quickly he covered his embarrassment with a flippant snort, "look, the only thing I really care about is becoming full demon; Kagome helps me find the shards of the Shikon jewel so that can happen, that's all. She and I have an understanding."

"An' what 'understanding' is that," inquired an incredulous Rahne.

"The understanding is that I always intended to take the jewel's power for myself – and one day I will."

"But how d'ye think Kagome feels – bein' used like that?"

"It doesn't matter," Inuyasha scoffed, "that's just how it is – I keep her safe, and she finds the shards; that's how it's always gonna be between us."

"You mean 'til y'find all of 'em," pointed out the Scot.

The boy nodded distractedly, "right, 'til then, of course."

"So once ye've achieved yuir goal, then what? You'll nae see Kagome anymore?" The diminutive girl frowned reproachfully as though Inuyasha were some ne'er do well she'd caught filching from the church's offering plate. Her tapered green eyes trained on him, a fine layer of fur sprouted unconsciously along her jaw line as she wavered between transitions.

"I didn't say that," snapped the hanyou defensively, "I just don't know yet – I haven't thought about that."

"Obviously not," reproved the changeling "or ye'd realize you're only drivin' the lass who loves ye away, though am'fair certain ye feel the same way aboot her!"

"That's none of your business! How do you suddenly know so much about me'n Kagome's supposed l-l-l-lo," nearly choking on the word, the dog demon gave up and settled on glaring at his accuser instead.

Rahne opened her mouth wide to reply when all of a sudden a shred of diplomacy manifested in her brash head. Breaking eye contact with Inuyasha, she sank to the ground in a sitting position, letting the calming aroma of wildflowers wash over her heated thoughts before replying.

After a moment she smiled thoughtfully up at her befuddled companion, "when I first saw Kagome I was in m'wolf form – I liked her scent right away, don't ye think it's nice – anyway, I didnae know a thing aboot what was goin' on between the two of ye yet. I could only tell that she was verra fashed over somethin' that she tried tae hide from everyone else. Then, after that, seeing ye both together th'other night I realized – well – I think you should go talk tae her an' try t'resolve this.

"Face it, Inuyasha, ye miss her," here the boy opened his mouth to protest, but she plunged on, "an' don't even try denyin' it, 'cause I could see it (not t'mention smell it) on ye all the way from the edge of the forest a moment ago!"

The dog demon scowled, "I do not smell like that!"

"Aye, t'me you do," contradicted the wolf girl. She shifted into an increasingly hairier, more canine appearance, "Mebbe think about what it is y'really want 'cause if you're not careful she may decide she fancies some other boy." With these final words, her altered vocal chords lost all remaining capacity for speech, giving her little option but to pad off and leave the half-demon with his reflections.

She hoped he would take her suggestion for what it was worth. Though she didn't count herself the best person for giving relationship advice – or advice on anything of importance for that matter – when it came to sensing others' emotional states she knew what she was talking about. Besides, had it been her, she'd want just the same courtesy from a boy – especially one particular boy.

Rahne cringed as much as a wolf could remembering the time her team-leader Sam had found her attractive after she'd gotten a makeover, and how she'd angrily punched him in the stomach when he hadn't realized it was her. Fortunately, she doubted Kagome would do anything like that no matter how badly Inuyasha had treated her – or maybe she would. The lupine only hoped she hadn't made things worse by butting in.

**The wind sorceress known as Kagura stared** hard at the designated spot below her gliding feather. According to what she'd been able to gather from various sources, this was where she would find the final object she needed in order to fully free herself from Naraku's control. For the sake of that weak mole demon that'd given her directions, it had better be the right place.

Landing, the young woman walked a few paces through low-lying shrubs and bramble, clearing them away with a swipe of her fan, to what appeared to be an enormous hollowed out tree fitting the description she'd been given. Several demon spiders pored from the opening at her approaching footstep, but were quickly dispatched by her dance of blades.

Her expectations, already low at best, were rapidly diminishing as she noticed the trunk's decaying state. Just another wild goose chase, she decided, where was she to find an acorn on a _dead_ tree? Besides, the very idea of something so common being the key to her freedom was ludicrous – just proving how desperate she'd become.

Disgusted, she made to turn away when the hollow where the spiders had issued caught her attention; it was almost large enough to step into. Were those things possibly guarding something within?

Cautiously, she peered into the hole finding no further resistance. On a whim, the demon woman enlarged the opening with another dramatic swipe and stepped inside. The interior was dank and musty as expected, with nothing to indicate there was anything special about this ancient hunk of wood. Kagura ran a hand searchingly along the interior of the tree, in hopes of finding some hidden niche or compartment – anything at all.

The Wind Sorceress growled in frustration; if this was a trick someone was going pay for making her look like a fool. Repositioning herself, she heard a dull crunch and lifted her foot only to discover a tiny sapling slowly trying to right itself from the impact. She paused – aside from the moss, insects, and fungi it was the only living thing within or around the tree. Could the acorn she was looking for be beneath the scrawny twig at her feet? Kagura carefully plucked out the plant, her scarlet eyes widening as she examined its root system; it was indeed attached to an acorn, however, certainly unlike any she'd ever seen before. An orb of white light emanating from its center lit the little seed with a mystical glow.

"The seed of life," the demon breathed in wonder, "If what I've been told is correct, I can transfer the essence of my being from Naraku's clutches and into this; I'll be immune to his attacks and free to finally do what I want."

Clutching the seed like a life line, her mind raced with ideas of where to conceal her tiny tree in order to hide it from her hated task master. First she would have to complete the spell required for the transfer, but that shouldn't be very difficult. Engrossed entirely in her thoughts, Kagura was oblivious to the quiet footsteps sneaking up on her.

"Hello Wind-Witch, how nice of Naraku to deliver you right into my hands."

The young woman whirled around in time to receive a roundhouse kick to the throat that sent her careening into a nearby tree. Head spinning and struggling to catch her breath, the dazed incarnation gradually registered the sneering Kouga as he once again charged at her. Impossibly swift blows pummeled her further into the bark. Where had her sapling landed, she immediately wondered with growing urgency.

Seizing her fan, the Wind Sorceress blasted her attacker off with a powerful gust. She managed to regain her unsteady footing just as the undaunted wolf got to his own feet.

"Damn cub," she spat out blood, "I should never have allowed you to live this long. If you miss your dead comrades so badly, then allow me to reunite you – Dance of Blades!"

_Well, I guess everyone thought I had forgotten about this story, but I haven't. I was just suffering some major writer's block. Anyway, I'm glad to hear from a few people who like it so far - hope you enjoyed this chapter too, and thanks for your reviews!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Ginta and Hakkaku** slipped swiftly and stealthily through the forest, all their senses attuned to their missing leader's possible whereabouts. After what should have been a brief scouting mission, Kouga had been gone for half the day – much to the pair's consternation.

Lifting his head to the sky, Ginta let out a low clear howl that served both to call out to the swift footed demon in question as well as to summon any wolves in the vicinity to their aid.

"Ginta, I think I smell blood," his pack brother alerted.

The other leapt to a tree branch in mid stride in order to gain better access to the wind currents. "I think you're right," he concluded urgently after several deep whiffs, "a demon's blood and a pretty long way off at that."

The two exchanged anxious glances before taking off once again in the direction of the scent.

"Kouga! Hey Kouga, answer us!"

At last they reached a crag with a steep drop-off providing a bird's eye view of the woodlands ahead. Pausing, the young warriors scanned the vast area with keen eyes – finding nothing to indicate what direction they should take next.

Hakkaku squatted down on his haunches and tried to catch is breath. He groaned quietly at the growing stitch in his side – this was really becoming an exhausting habit. As always, the disadvantage of trailing Kouga was that he traveled such incredible distances with the same effort it took a normal wolf demon to cover half as much ground; it was almost enough to make Hakkaku collapse in defeat on the spot. Quickly shaking the faint-hearted thought from his mind, he reassured himself once again that Kouga was nearby and they wouldn't stop until they'd found him.

Before long, a rustle from behind abruptly sent both to their feet once again.

"Rahne-san," the two exclaimed simultaneously at the rusty she-wolf that appeared through the trees. Immediately she reverted to transitional form and (still panting) greeted them with a wide smile that vanished at once when she noticed their grim expressions.

"Ah thought I'd never catch up! Ah heard a wolf call an' somehow I ken that it might be ye – what's goin' on?"

"We could really use your help," Ginta informed her, "Kouga's gone missing and we think he may be injured somewhere."

"Aye, okay then," replied the girl, moving to join them at the cliff's edge.

**Over an hour later**, by Rahne's reckoning, the trio stood in the midst of a badly damaged thicket. The evidence of an all out battle was glaringly obvious even if you weren't possessed of acute senses. Under the late afternoon sun, Ginta and Hakkaku knelt by a large pool of blood.

"I recognize Kagura's scent – some of this must be her blood," said Ginta.

"Yeah, I recognize her handiwork too," the other demon muttered, eyeing a large oak which lay split down the center in two clean halves at his feet.

"But where are they now," Rahne wondered aloud.

"Well Kagura's scent stops right around here," mused Hakkaku, stepping to the clearing, "she must have gotten away by the wind; as for Kouga…" He and Ginta now turned back to the blood-smeared ground and the tell-tale trail of broken twigs and red footprints leading the opposite direction.

**The once again airborne sorceress** swore to herself as she examined rapidly wilting sapling in her lap. She knew the wolf demon had been alive when she left – even if barely. Hopefully his injuries were extensive enough that he would die anyway, but if he didn't she'd most likely meet up with him again. Not that it mattered much, he'd never be strong enough to pose a true threat to her – beside Naraku, Kouga was a mere insect in her path. Never the less, Kagura traced the angry gash across her face made by the demon's claws, he was still a great nuisance.

None of that mattered now – she had to hurry and find somewhere to plant her enchanted tree before it died along with all her hard work and planning. The hardest part was getting it as far away (and therefore as safe from) Naraku's influence as possible; she had already traveled a great distance. Finishing off that accused wolf might have taken all day, so she'd settled instead with impaling him on a cedar in order to get away.

Kagura turned her attention back to the ground; a narrow valley caught her eye and she deftly swerved downward. The young woman scouted the secluded lowlands until she found a suitable spot to deposit her miniature tree. Here the area was inconspicuous enough not to draw unwanted attention yet simple enough for her to easily find again. Hastily planting the sapling she made ready to complete the transfer, reaching into her kimono for the crucial element.

She found nothing. Kagura checked her sleeves a second time, again coming up empty.

"Where the hell is it," she ground with growing urgency – shaking out her clothing, "where's the water?"

The demon closed her eyes and mentally retraced her steps – suddenly her scarlet orbs flew open and she let out an enraged shriek.

"**_Kouga! Kouga, can you hear me?_"**

The young cheiftan opened his eyes painfully – three hazy forms materialized in his line of vision – and groaned.

"He's awake," he heard Hakkaku announce, "I was afraid for a moment she'd actually killed him!"

"You should be more afraid of me killing you – what the hell took you slackers so long? I've been lying here, bleeding to death for half a day." The gruff words meant to salvage his pride came out sounding weak and pathetic even to his own ears; Kouga was only grateful that Inuyasha couldn't see him now.

"Ah, the poor thing – how horrible!"

The wolf demon struggled to focus on the owner of the vaguely familiar third voice to suddenly realize it was the shape-shifting red-haired girl staying with Kagome's group.

"What are you doing here?"

"Rahne helped us find you," supplied Ginta, "and it looks like we got here just in time – we have to treat those wounds." He eyed the gaping hole through Kouga's middle apprehensively.

While the other two demons went off to gather herbs and various plants to heal their boss, Rahne (who knew little of what to look for) remained with the wolf leader. Wanting to keep him as comfortable as possible, she decided to fetch some water. As she moved to stand, she noticed the sun catch on a shiny object at his waist. An oddly delicate glass vial protruded from the belt of his blood-soiled loin pelt, filled with a clear liquid.

"Is tha' water," she asked.

"That is nothing you need to worry about," he muttered, closing his hand around the small container.

She frowned curiously at this; knowing he probably obtained it after his encounter with the said Kagura – otherwise the fragile specimen would have been in as bad a shape as he himself was. Still, she had no idea why he'd be so secretive about it. The girl supposed he just didn't feel like talking to her.

"Okay then," she got up, "I'll just nip down t' the stream."

Rahne returned with both her gloves sloshing with water after finding no other suitable receptacle. Upon her arrival Ginta and Hakkaku had returned and were treating Kouga. The lupine girl aided the best she could – with a doctor for a foster mother, she did at least understand a thing or two about treating wounds.

The hurt wolf demon remained quiet through their ministrations, appearing more reflective than in pain. At last, his injuries bound, Kouga sat up gingerly and gazed at all three of them in turn. A commanding air returned to his demeanor as he spoke.

"I want you to take this and hide it someplace good," he slid the bottle Rahne had noticed earlier from his belt and shoved it into Ginta's hands, "hurry up! Then I want the rest of you to get out of here."

"But why, Kouga," asked his bewildered lieutenants in unison.

"Never mind," he barked, "just don't come back until I come and get you myself, got it?"

"I don't know if this is such a good idea," advised Ginta, looking nervously from the bottle he held and back to his leader, "you're not fit to protect yourself right now – what if carrion birds found you, or worse Kagura came back to finish you off?"

"That's the whole point! Don't ask me any more questions now, just leave; I know what I'm doing," he glared at them in a manner that made clear the matter was closed for discussion and silently defied them to disobey.

Anxious yet subdued, the two demons reluctantly exited the narrow cavern Kouga had managed to crawl into when they'd first discovered him. Equally nonplussed, Wolfsbane followed after, leaving the young chieftain alone within.

**The mohawked demon watched as his** brother sped off to do their leader's bidding and hide the mysterious relic. Worried as he was (not for the first or last time) about Kouga's sanity, he felt a little better knowing at least their chief was fairly well hidden. What he couldn't figure out was what the young man in question was up to – what was so important about some water container? Did Kouga actually expect Kagura to come looking for him; if so he couldn't possibly be delusional enough to believe he was in any shape to fight her.

Unwilling to venture too far from Kouga's crawl space in case of any trouble, Hakkaku found Rahne sitting by the stream and moved to join her. Neither spoke for quite some time, each absorbed in his or her own thoughts. Eventually the demon turned to the human girl and asked rather hesitantly, "which one would you choose?"

Rahne's head jerked up in surprise, "Whazzat?"

"I was just thinking that if you had to make a choice between being wolf or human – which do you think you'd choose?"

The girl gaped at him as if he'd just asked her whether or not she wanted a particular disease. She answered a little more sharply than she'd intended, "Its better t'be human of course, the wolf is nothing but what's wild an' vicious inside me; I'd get rid of it if I could!"

"Oh…" More or less deflated by her reaction, Hakkaku fell silent and once again gazed out at the water.

Finally Rahne couldn't resist any longer and inquired, "Why d'ye ask anyway?"

The other seemed embarrassed, "I was just thinking that if you _wanted_ to be a wolf permanently, then maybe you could travel with us."

She frowned uncertainly at the suggestion. "Er, Hakkaku that reminds me of somethin'; c'n I ask ye a question?"

"Okay," he shrugged.

"When I was with Kagome's group I heard Miroku mention something aboot demons –Hakkaku, I was wonderin'… d'ye ever eat human children?"

The youth scratched the base of his scull awkwardly, "Well yeah, sometimes."

The Scots girl, who had half expected a staunch rebuff, jumped back in surprise: "What?"

"I haven't in a while now," he quickly assured her, "Kouga doesn't want us to. Actually there's no real need to – we can usually find enough food for the three of us without resorting to that."

"Ach, but ye still _did_," cried Rahne.

"But that was before we knew any humans," he defended, flinching slightly at her outburst.

"It still doesnae make it any better, I dinnae want any part of such wickedness if that's what bein' in a demon wolf pack means!"

Hakkakku leveled a meaningful stare at his companion, "Say what you like, but you're more like a wolf than you care to admit."

"An' whit iszzat 'sposed tae mean," she squawked back, her hands flying to her hips.

"I mean that you _like_ your wolf side," he raised his own voice to match hers, "it's obvious to anyone who's known you for longer than twenty minutes! Why should you think what makes you happy is evil? You have a gift – you should be proud to use it!"

"Proud, that's daft," she scoffed angrily, "an' why should Ah lissen tae a lyin' de'il-spawn like _ye_ anyway!"

A stunned pause followed, the vicious words hanging in the air between them like miasma. Almost immediately Rahne burst into tears, burying her face in his shoulder.

"Ah'm sorry, Hakkaku," she sobbed, "I didnae mean it – nae really! Please don't hate me!"

Any anger or injury he might have registered instantly evaporated at Rahne's own overwhelming self-reproach. Blushing and completely bewildered, he patted her back awkwardly, "I don't; it's okay, please stop crying..."

The swollen faced girl slowly pulled away, wiping her streaming eyes on her gloved hand, "Ah wouldnae derry ye if y'did; Ah'm fair terrible a friend! Here ye've done s'much fer me an' all I can dae is act like a gallus heifer tae ye!"

Straining to follow her thickened accent even further garbled by sobbing, the youth gently lifted her chin so that she faced him. Resting an elbow on one knee, he propped his own chin on his knuckles and frowned thoughtfully back into her green eyes. "Rahne," he chided as though to a misguided cub, "I don't understand why you are so worried about evil; it really isn't something that's easy to miss, especially for someone with your intuition. And if you're still unsure about what _is_ wicked well – you aren't it."

She blinked up at him in surprise, her blotchy cheeks going a darker pink. After a moment's contemplation the redhead hesitantly opened her mouth to reply.

The wind that suddenly blasted against the seated pair effectively cut her words off, nearly knocking them both over in the same motion. A splash of vibrant colored kimonos and two smoldering red eyes immediately revealed an angry sorceress looming before them.

"Where is it," her dangerously flashing eyes belied her lazy tone.

"K-Kagura," stammered an amazed Hakkaku, looking for the entire world like he'd seen a specter. Rahne fleetingly wondered if he'd ever even laid eyes on the woman before today – judging by his stunned reaction.

The demon in question casually whipped a fan from her sleeve, "Look, I have no time to play games with you, wolf; what has he done with it? If you want to live you'd better give me some answers fast."


	6. Chapter 6

**Hakkaku stammered helplessly, at a** momentary loss for words. Kagura hurled a barrage of deadly blades at the startled pair who barely regained enough presence of mind to dive to either side – both just avoiding decapitations.

"Now that I have your attention," remarked the demoness dryly, "I'll ask you nicely one more time: what has that Kouga done with my glass vial?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, you witch," Hakkaku shoted back without hesitation, though Rahne could practically see his knees knocking together as he spoke. She quietly marveled at his loyalty.

"Is that so," the fan wielding woman asked dangerously, "then maybe you'd better just take me to him so that I can ask him myself."

Glaring at the ground in front of him, Hakkaku simply gritted his teeth together and said nothing.

Kagura laughed harshly. "You're even stupider than you look if you think your silence has saved your master in any way. All you've managed to do is bring about your own death!" She prepared to obliterate the obstinate lieutenant.

The blow came so quickly and unexpectedly that Naraku's incarnation was caught completely off guard. She suddenly collapsed to the ground in a dainty colorful heap, deep claw marks excavating her slight shoulder down to the bone – fortunately her absent heart could not sustain damage from the grievous laceration as it was safely within the clutches of Naraku.

Before she could turn around, a shrill, animalistic voice roared, "_Get away from him!_" Kagura had just enough time to dodge a large, hairy hand with razor sharp claws as it plowed into the ground only a couple centimeters from her face.

"You'd better be glad you didn't damage my good looks just then," remarked the calm yet visibly ruffled sorceress as she faced the grotesque creature snarling above her.

Rahne was casually tossed into the air by a blasting gust of wind and sent careening into a tree. The lupine fell to the ground, immediately resuming human form.

Kagura pulled herself up, brushing off her Kimonos and glared at each of them in turn. "Look, I'm really not in the mood for another one-sided scuffle. Why don't you save us all the trouble and tell me where your boss is."

Hakkaku's glance darted from his friend, lying prone and motionless on the ground; hastily back to his kinsmen's murderer. "W-what exactly is so special about this water; why do you want it so badly anyway?"

"No particular reason that concerns you," drawled crimson-eyed woman.

Despite himself, Hakkaku's own eyes narrowed defiantly, "Obviously not for anything good…"

"Hmph," she dismissed uncaringly, "so where is it?"

He answered honestly. "I don't know."

Kagura's dainty lip curled into a snarl as she flipped her fan open once again, indicating that his wasn't the answer she was looking for.

The young male demon quickly braced himself to join his departed brethren in the next world thinking perhaps it was better this way; at least he hadn't betrayed Kouga. Rahne, by now struggling rather painfully into a sitting position, suddenly found Hakkaku staring into the face of imminent death. All she could do was gape in horror.

"Killing my subordinate isn't going to make me very eager to tell you where your prize is," warned a cocky voice to the Scots girl's left all of a sudden.

All three heads whirled in unison toward the noise's source as the chief of the Eastern Wolf Pack presently limped, with as much dignity as he could muster, through the clearing and eventually covered the distance to where Kagura stood.

"So you're still alive after all," laughed the sorceress shortly. However, it seemed to Rahne a glint of grudging respect flashed briefly in her arresting eyes. "Have you actually gotten wise and decided to cooperate then?"

"Don't fool yourself, Kagura," sneered the other demon. "I had a feeling you were performing some task for Naraku, and I want to know what it is!"

The woman stood motionless; her petulant glare never altered as the light and shadows from a maple tree danced across her porcelain face. "Well you're in one hell of a position to negotiate," she spat with almost childish sullenness. Despite her whiney tone, Rahne fully understood the witch was far from giving an inch. Kagura's hand twitched eagerly over her fan as her fiery stare pierced through the smug wolf leader.

Ever blunt, Kouga cut straight to the point. "What were you planning on using that container of water for?"

The Scottish girl heard a low growl that sounded like it was coming from Kouga – she presently realized it was actually the wind sorceress.

"I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you." Her eyes suddenly scanned the rest of the group as though noticing something amiss for the first time. "That's interesting; where did your other pathetic lackey get to," she asked the wolf leader with mock concern, "seems you've replaced him with some…odd little hybrid." Her glance took in Rahne's peculiar dress and ended at her cropped red hair, a smirk of distaste curling her lip. "Hmm – an ugly little shrew, but then you always did have strange taste in females…"

The demon's icy blue stare converged into her own fiery gaze with tempestuous force. His brows knit together as he emitted a low almost inaudible growl of his own.

A vicious smile spread across her face. Kagura brought her free hand up to her hair tie, librating one of its feathers. With an explosion of dust the woman rose up on her preferred mode of transportation and sneered down at them, "Maybe I should go find him and see what _he _can tell me."

"He won't tell you anything," Kouga barked up to her, "and if you kill him you'll never find it."

Kagura paused in her ascent and scowled thoughtfully down at him.

The wolf leader's expression hardened into a steely resolution, "we're the last three of our tribe and we've got nothing left to loose. I know that water – or whatever it is – has something to do with Naraku and I want to know what."

"It's of absolutely no use to you; if you wolves know what's good for you, you won't interfere in my business! Naraku will never be defeated by your likes – not even _I_ could hope to defeat him!"

Hearing her final statement, Kouga gave the other demon a sharp look. "Wait a minute; are you saying you _want _him defeated," he demanded in sudden surprise.

"Be quiet," she threatened quickly, "suffice to say that you're helping nothing by refusing to hand over my property, and you're going to be very sorry for it!" Without another word the airborne sorceress sailed away on a strong current of wind and left the three of them staring after her.

"She's goin' tae kill Ginta; we have tae stop her," cried Rahne.

Hakkaku looked desperately at his boss who gritted his sharp teeth into an angry snarl.

**Ginta couldn't shake an** overwhelming sense of foreboding, the feeling that at any moment something terrible was going to happen to him. The overwhelming relief that he'd first felt after depositing his tiny yet surprisingly heavy burden was beginning to fade and dread was slowly filling the void left in its absence. Doing his best to avoid clearings, the young wolf crept stealthily through the forest. He didn't think it wise to return just yet so he decided to lay low for a little while longer and hope that Kagura didn't find and decapitate him in the meantime.

A shiver ran down his spine as he squatted momentarily to quench his thirst at a small stream. So far none of his keen senses indicated that anyone was nearby, but he reasonably deduced that he'd most likely be dead long before he was ever aware of the vengeful sorceress' presence. He couldn't afford to rest for long – fortunately months of trying to keep up with Kouga had gotten him used to long stretches of exertion.

The light but unmistakable tread of bare feet (most likely a woman's) pricked his ears in the midst of these uneasy ruminations and Ginta instantly froze. Was it all over; had she found him that quickly? He sniffed the air for any hint of Naraku's telltale scent, but all he picked up was the slight smell of sour earth. The wolf demon regained enough presence of mind to scrabble behind a boulder before the mysterious intruder emerged from the shadowy grasses. It was indeed a woman – more specifically a priestess, and much more importantly _not_ Kagura come to murder him. Greatly relieved, the demonic young man let out his held breath and sagged against the large rock.

"I know you're there, demon; why don't you come out and show yourself."

Ginta whipped around to see the pale young woman loading an arrow into her bow; she was glaring in his direction as though she could see straight through the boulder he hid behind.

Uttering something between a groan and a whimper he reluctantly rose to face her, hands outstretched imploringly. "Please don't shoot," placated the wolf wearily, "I don't want any trouble."

"What were you doing hiding back there," the suspicious miko asked without lowering her bow.

"Are you the priestess Kikiyou, by any chance," inquired Ginta suddenly.

Her eyes widened momentarily before regaining their stoic expression. "How do you know me?"

He didn't want to say 'by the smell of graveyard soil,' so he instead settled for, "I'm a friend of Inuyasha's."

Hope stirred within him at the thought of this a possible new ally against Kagura standing before him, his initial encouragement faltering only slightly when she failed to lower the arrow trained on his head. Perhaps, he thought, Inuyasha wasn't the best name to mention after all.

"State your business," ordered the priestess.

Ginta debated a moment before cautiously settling on the truth; "I've stolen something from Naraku's incarnation, Kagura, and now I'm afraid she's after me."

Throwing caution to the wind, the youth gave her the full story – hoping he wasn't making a terrible mistake to trust her.

Kikiyou's dark orbs scrutinized him cagily as Ginta finished up his hasty tale. He waited impatiently for her response, holding his breath before a disturbance suddenly caught their attentions and brought both pairs of eyes urgently skyward. The wolf demon's heart skipped a beat as he distinguished a feather-shaped missile shooting resolutely toward them. Before his panic numbed brain could register any course of action, however, the vindictive sorceress had already arrived.

"Alright, you know who I am and you know what I want, wolf. Tell me where it is quickly and I might not kill you," as an afterthought, her gaze slowly shifted to include Kikiyou, "and I'll also thank _you_ to stay out of this."

"**Why am I even here,"** Inuyasha asked himself for at least the third time that night as he stood gazing up at the faintly glowing window of the house's second storey. How long he'd been glued to the same spot with his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth he couldn't say for certain. He only knew that every time he attempted to make the simple leap to the window sill, fear and pride weighed him down like a pair of lead shoes.

Once again he considered going back, but even then an invisible barrier seemed to bar his way. Pride grappled with loneliness a few minutes more before the former was finally overthrown and launched him up to Kagome's ledge.

She was asleep. Perhaps, he thought, it would be better to wait until morning – at least then he could actually think of what he wanted to say. A feeble excuse he knew: Inuyasha wasn't any good at planning things out. Anything he said tomorrow would still sound the same regardless of how long he sat and thought about it (another thing he didn't like doing). Still…no use waking Kagome and having her get even angrier and possibly sitting him – he could just spend the night on this ledge and wait.

The half-demon settled his back against the glass panes. Finding a relatively comfortable position, he slowly shut his eyes. He had nearly drifted off when a violent rustle on the other side of the window perked his ears back up. He cocked his head slightly to catch what was going on; the girl inside was tossing restlessly and, by the sound of it, very much wakeful. The boy groaned quietly to himself, hopping if he ignored the disturbance long enough she might calm back down and go to sleep. He heard her start sniffling instead. Was she crying? He really didn't want to know.

Sighing in resignation, the hanyou reached over and rapped his knuckles sharply agaisnt the glass. The startled girl jerked around to face the window, with a strangled yelp. The moment she caught sight of his pale halo of hair glowing in the moonlight her tensed body immediately relaxed and she rushed over to meet him.

"What are you doing here at this time of night, you nearly scared me to death," she hissed while throwing the sash up to glare at him.

Inuyasha brushed past her with a grunt as he slipped inside the room, "Don't be so overdramatic. I'm here because I need to talk to you."

He watched her pace apprehensively to her dresser and switch on a small lamp. She then paused long enough to glance in the mirror and run a hand through her hair before pacing back to where he was. After plopping down cross-legged on the carpet, she indicated him to do the same.

"So what is it that you want to say to me, and why did you wait until the middle of the night?"

"Kagome, I wanted to talk to you about my conversation with Kikiyou the other day."

Even in the dim light he could see her stiffen. "Okay," she replied slowly, "I'm listening."

_**Author's Note:** Hopefully that didn't end too abruptly. Sorry for taking so long to update this story for anyone who has been waiting... sometimes I just get such bad witer's block! Oh well, I hope you liked the chapter anyway, and send me any feedback you might have concerning the story - I'm definitely open for any suggestions! For now, I'm probably going to focus more on writing the second part for "As Told by a HalfBaked Hanyou", then I'll get back to this one again - yay!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Eyes like smouldering coals locked** on Ginta who was certain he could feel them roasting him where he stood. Face to face with her for the first time in his life, he failed to grasp how the frail woman before him had single handedly slaughtered all of the fierce Eastern wolves, and even less how her mere stare now made him want to bolt – even as it held him transfixed to the spot.

"Why don't you just give it up," she smirked, "you have no chance against me." Her words were smug but truthful.

"Maybe not, but _I_ do," Ginta cast a quick glance behind him to see the priestess training her arrow on the demon woman. The young lieutenant felt his knees go watery with relief at Kikiyou's assistance. Hastily recovering, his own resolved stare returned to Kagura with renewed confidence.

"I told you to stay out of this, girl," spat the witch angrily.

"Not until you tell me what Naraku's plans are for that enchanted water you stole," demanded the miko.

Kagura flinched slightly at her incarnator's name as her scarlet eyes automatically scanned the skies – then promptly brushed it off with a scornful cackle. "Which should I be more afraid of – some third-rate demon and a dead priestess, or betraying the unstoppable monster that holds my very life in his hands?"

"I see. So you want that water for your own purposes." The archer regarded the other woman with a piercing look.

"I never said that, mind your own business," snapped Kagura, clutching her fan defensively.

"Tell me;" demanded the priestess undaunted, "how long do you actually think you'll be able to get away with sneaking around behind Naraku's back like this? He could already be onto you."

"If Naraku suspected any disloyalty on my part I'd already be as good as dead," the other shot back.

"And yet, here you are…"

Conceding at last, Kagura smiled evilly down her nose at them, "if you're so convinced that I'm working against Naraku, you should want me to have that vial back. After all, it would be in your own best interest as well."

"Just because you wish yourself free from his dominion doesn't make you an ally," objected the human, "I still don't know your exact purpose for wanting it or how you possibly think a simple container of water – even enchanted water – will do anything against Naraku."

"Let me worry about that," sniffed the other woman impatiently.

"Not if you foolishly give him another weapon to use against us!"

"Idiot, it's like you just said; what use do you think Naraku would possibly have for the damned water? He's already more powerful than you and Inuyasha combined. And who says I'm trying to destroy him; I'm not that stupid," Kagura clenched her dainty teeth savagely, her red eyes burning wild and desperate, "You're going to ruin everything!"

"What are you talking about," spoke up Ginta.

Without listening, Kagura flung her wind blades angrily in their direction. The wolf demon dove for cover as the priestess fired a warning arrow that the sorceress narrowly dodged. "I swear to you I _will_ have that water one way or another, whether you willingly hand it over or not!"

Kikiyou merely reloaded her bow, not saying a word. A fight now seemed inevitable.

"Give it back," snarled the demoness, refusing to back down.

"Hey," shouted an authoritative voice suddenly; both women directed their attention to the almost forgotten Ginta who now reemerged with a determined expression. "Listen up Kagura; I'll show you where it is!"

With matching looks of shock, the two gaped back at his inexplicable change of heart.

**Sprinting with Kouga proved** an enormous challenge for the little red wolf who remained a few paces ahead of her adopted pack brother, yet barely within sight range of their leader.

Rahne's fully attuned senses reeled. She half ran half stumbled down a steep incline in her struggle to follow Kouga's scent even as Hakkaku's rising panic blazed like a rampant fire at her back, driving her onward. Both young men were frantic to reach their endangered comrade before it was too late – but especially Kouga who shouldered the burden of responsibility for his subordinate's situation.

Whenever the swift footed chieftain _did_ manage to loose them completely in their mad chase (not something incredibly difficult for the shard enhanced demon) they always eventually found him awaiting them with barely repressed irritation before he plunged on to leave them in a cloud of dust once again. The Scots lycanthrope felt her own sense of urgency very acutely; in fact, had she access to her human faculties at the moment she might have paused to consider how rapidly she'd come to regard a pair of wild, demonic youths that she'd met barely two days ago, as family. Her bestial mind, however, could only register one thought at the moment: _find Ginta_.

Rahne could feel herself rapidly running out of steam. Hakkaku was now steadily outdistancing her, and more than anything, she longed to pause for a drink and to catch her breath. Forcing all thoughts of weariness away, she pushed her sturdy though merely mortal body to its limit, determined she wouldn't be a hindrance to the other wolves. Though she wasn't a demon, she didn't want them thinking she couldn't pull her own weight. Her muscles burning with fatigue, the young changeling wasn't at all certain how much longer she could continue at the pace they were moving. She felt she would finally collapse when Kouga unexpectedly came to a dead halt. Unable to react in time Rahne managed to blunder into the back of Hakkaku's legs as the other skidded to a stop at the chief's side. Collapsing on himself like a folding chair, Hakkaku landed heavily on top of her.

Kouga glared down at the panting heap at his feet and grunted, "He must have taken the stream; the scent gets patchy here." The wolf boss pointed toward the small body of water flowing down the valley and away into the thick brush. A similar rivulet was coursing its way steadily down Kouga's abdomen to drip lazily from his thighs. Rahne eyed the gore anxiously as she transitioned enough to gain access to her vocal chords.

"Ye cannae go on like this, y'know; yuir nowhere near healed up enough" she pointed at the dark drops spattering his feet, "all this exertion's only reopenin' yuir wounds!" She carefully disentangled herself with the mohawked demon, at the same time looking to him for added support, "let Hakkaku and I find him before ye end up killin' yuirself!"

Hakkaku braced himself for Kouga's forthcoming explosion while hesitantly agreeing, "we _are_ in better shape than you to handle Kagura if it comes down to it, boss."

As expected, the long haired demon's face reddened in outrage toward the disloyal pair. His lips pulled back on an angry retort that dissolved into a groan as he suddenly sank to his knees. The blood that had soaked liberally through his bandages now almost completely saturated his loin pelt.

His lieutenant knelt beside him beseechingly, "Stop before you bleed to death, Kouga! We can't loose you!"

Kouga's blue eyes remained defiant. He opened his mouth to deny any weakness, but his traitorous throat closed up on him as he spoke – spraying red-tinged spittle in a coughing upsurge. The fit gradually passed, leaving the proud leader trembling and groaning. With great effort he attempted to rise back on his feet only to collapse helplessly onto the muddy bank once again.

Catching his breath, Kouga looked with resentment up at his companions who stared calmly back at him – '_only because they know they've won,_' he thought bitterly. It seemed to Rahne a silent battle was waging behind his intense glare as he finally spoke. "Hurry up and go then, will ya...just don't try anything stupid with that witch!"

The lieutenant automatically drew a deep breath to argue, and then paused as he mentally replayed Kouga's words. "Um, right," agreed the startled Hakkaku, scarcely able to believe he'd heard the other demon correctly "don't worry about a thing, Sir." He carefully stepped around his injured pack leader, giving him a last uncertain look before rejoining the human girl.

"Wait," Kouga called sharply to their retreating forms, Rahne and Hakkaku glanced apprehensively back. "Like I already said, don't do anything stupid like try and fight Kagura…" (Rahne couldn't help but find the statement terribly hypocritical) "If she does show up and cause you too much trouble, tell Ginta to – tell him I said to show her where he hid the stinkin' bottle." Both could see the effort it took for the indomitable head of the Eastern Wolf Tribe to make these sacrifices, yet no one could argue the priority of protecting his remaining pack family – even at the cost of pride and revenge.

Rahne's tender heart nearly burst for him; she was rapidly developing a new level of respect for the arrogant and rather standoffish young man. With a secret smile, she turned back to follow Hakkaku down the stream.

**No longer having to** keep up with Kouga's breakneck speed, the going became much easier if no exactly leisurely. Even though the scent was simple enough to pick back up in the shallow water, there were still moments in which they had to pause in order to find it again at certain patches. Hakakku would often pause when she began lagging and allow her to catch up or look to her for assistance when he was unable to find their friend's meandering trail again. The fourteen-year-old was shyly grateful for the chivalrous gestures. He, however, was just relieved to have her support – and keen nose.

"D'ye really ken we should ha' left poor Kouga bleedin' out in the open th' way we did?" she asked anxiously. Hakakku frowned thoughtfully, "not entirely, but what other choice do we have – besides, I don't think anyone will bother him."

"Yeah," the girl agreed as she trudged up to a narrow drop off and peered carefully down, "I recon tha' fan-wielding lady is only interested in Ginta now."

The other merely grunted his agreement as he joined her beside the ravine where a small waterfall spilled into the stream below. "Which did he do: jump over or climb down," wondered Hakakku aloud. "Look, there's his footprint on the other side; he must have jumped."

"No, I think he climbed" she disagreed, "the scent leads down!"

With a curious snort, the demon made the leap for himself and sniffed the air for his brother's distinct aroma.

With his highly developed sense of smell the young man – like all other wolves – was able to actually _see_ scents. To Hakkaku's nose, Ginta's smell was a deep reddish brown color. He'd carefully watched it grow more and more vibrant with every stride he took, and now he could indeed smell it leading decidedly into the thickening brush beyond; he turned to announce that he'd been right (more than a hint of smugness flaring up inside him as he'd begun to suspect the young girl's olfactory sense as being a bit keener than his own) only to pause in mid-breath. Head jerking abruptly downward he realized a second trail – fairly more strong and recent – ran like a dark maroon-colored blaze down the same side of the cliff. Hakkaku decided Ginta must have fled to the woods initially, but then turned around at some point only to head back to the same spot and climb down.

Hakkaku stared curiously into the distant trees and scratched his chin, "I wonder…"

"What is it," called an impatient Rahne.

He grinned over at her sheepishly, "we were both right, but I think we'd do better to take you way after all."

The reddish werewolf shot him a knowing grin of her own as she placed her hands triumphantly on her hips, "wha'd I tell ye?"

Hakakku rolled his eyes at her and began making his way down the chasm. Glancing back he could see the fiery-haired girl still smirking as she followed his lead.

"He cannae be far now," Rahne announced hopefully as they waded through the rocky stream at the bottom of the cliff, "th' scent couldn't be more than fifteen minutes auld."

"Right," muttered the wolf demon, shooting a look over either shoulder as he moved closer to the girl. "Be on your guard though." He only hoped his brother was still well and in one piece, for as the scent grew stronger, so did Hakakku's anxiety.

Amidst his brooding state of mind, the young man was soon startled back to the present as a new and baffling turn of events smacked him in the face. He found Rahne's solicitous green eyes already upon him as she voiced the latest quandary before he could decide whether he'd suddenly lost his nose or perhaps his mind.

"Och, Hakkaku, th' scent just ends!" She gestured around the spot they stood in, turning in a circle, "Ah'm fair jiggered – where could he have gotten tae?"

"I don't know," he replied, taking in a deep breath, "but I smell sour earth."

"And…death," Rahne whispered after a long pause, one clawed hand clutching her chest.

The spiky-haired demon made a slow revolution around his smaller red-headed companion as he took in the surroundings. An unsettling idea was already creeping into his addled brain. His eye traveled almost involuntarily toward the skyline. "Wherever Ginta is, I doubt he's alone."

_Whew! Okay, another extremely difficult chapter down. Hopefully pretty soon I'll gain some idea of what I'm doing. Thanks for all the helpful reviews so far; they've really encouraged me to stay on task (well mostly... sorry for the delay as always.)_


	8. Chapter 8

**He felt like he'd been lying there** in the trench for half the damn day now! Darkness had long since enveloped everything in its shadowy grasp, leaving him only slightly more impaired than when he'd first been discarded in this pit like an old piece of trash. He was unafraid for himself, only concerned for his absent kindred – possibly dead now…Possibly dead because of his rashness.

Kouga took another deep breath to clear his mind, and stared blankly up into the starry sky. His eyes slowly unfocussed and the stars became a blur before completely disappearing behind his lids. He was thinking about a stream – one that flowed with enchanted water that sparkled like it was made from myriads of tiny crystals. Under a huge red sun he stood ankle deep in the babbling ebb, bending to scoop up a handful. Before he could completely straighten, Kouga felt something zip past his right ear and whip his hair around as it passed. The wolf leader's head shot up just in time for him to make out at least a dozen streamlined projectiles spinning toward him.

The demon leapt high into the air to avoid them, only to come face to face with Kagura perched atop her hovering feather. She quickly reached into her kimono and flung another handful of sharp missiles at him, effectively fastening him to the trunk of an enormous tree which had materialized behind him. Kouga eyed one of the lethal-looking objects buried into his shoulder padding and noticed it was a feather.

"That's _my _water, wolf," shouted the witch, "you stole it from me!"

The young man struggled weakly against his bondage, but found he could barely move at all. Again Kagura moved to strike him, this time producing an enormous pointed shaft from within her chest that appeared to be a massive jewel shard more than twenty times the size of the actual shikon jewel. She wielded the lethal rock like a stake, raising it over her head to plunge it through his body.

"No! Stop," shouted Kouga as he watched her arm descend in eerie dreamlike slow-motion toward his midsection. The limbs he attempted to flail felt heavier than stone. Before his astonished eyes the woman on the feather began to morph. Her kimonos shortened into a frilly green skirt and white blouse. Kagome stared back at him as she pulled back a jewel shard tipped arrow. "Kouga," she shouted.

The wolf demon jerked awake. Gone were the feathers, arrows and jewel shards, only Kagome's soft brown eyes gazed intently back.

"Kouga," she asked with concern as her moon lit orbs traveled solicitously over his broken body.

"Ka-ka-gome?"

"Who did this to you," gasped the girl.

"Don't worry about it, Kagome," the heavily bandaged wolf leader smirked at her, "I've been in worse shape than this."

"Keh, looks like he finally pissed off the wrong demon and got his ass handed to him," remarked Inuyasha dryly as he eyed the rather intimate moment between the two from nearby.

"It's no big deal," Kouga replied to Kagome as if Inuyasha had never even spoken, "I met up with Kaugura earlier."

"Kagura," piped up the fox-boy, Shippo, who suddenly appeared at the human girl's shoulder, "we're actually looking for her too!"

Kagome began to rummage through the bag she always wore on her back, "I think I have some topical treatment in here somewhere." Kouga noticed she wasn't wearing her usual green and white clothing, but garments made of a softer, loose-fitting material. On closer examination of her drooping and slightly ringed eyes he realized she must have recently woken up.

"Why are you looking for Kagura," he asked her.

"Actually, we're looking for a certain river guardian," supplied the demon slayer as she and the monk tromped down the embankment accompanied by the group's large cat demon.

Kouga grimaced slightly as Kagome gently rubbed a pasty substance on his now unwrapped wound, "River guardian?"

"Right, Inuyasha found out from Kikiyou that Kagura stole enchanted water from a river god; we want to find out what she's planning to do with it," the girl said somewhat stiffly as she re-bandaged his midsection. The half-demon in question said nothing, but stared determinedly and (it seemed to the wolf) shamefully at the ground.

Kouga took silent pleasure in the tension between them as he turned helpfully back to the young woman tending him, "I actually know about that water; I stole it from her after she did _this _to me."

All eyes were suddenly fixed intently on the blue-eyed demon. "Where is it, then," demanded Inuyasha.

"I have no idea," the wolf shot back; "I sent it with my lieutenant to be hidden for ransom. In fact, his brother and that girl changeling went on ahead of me in order to find him before Kagura does."

"Is Kagura after him," asked Kagome.

The wolf chief nodded vigorously, "Yes, and I'm worried she'll kill him – all of them."

"Well of course she'd kill them if she got the chance, you idiot," growled the insufferable dog turd.

"How long have they been gone," Kagome calmly inquired in an attempt to diffuse the situation.

"I'm not sure," he admitted, "but probably a couple hours. They headed in that direction." Kouga gestured the way Hakkaku and Rahne had departed. He suddenly turned a sullen yet earnest face on his rival, "you have to help them – I can't do anything like this."

"_What_," balked Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha, you can track them with your nose," Shippo insisted irritably.

"I know that, stupid!" He then turned doubtfully to the kneeling girl, "but who's gonna protect you guys if something happens?"

Miroku smirked, "Relax, Inuyasha, I think the rest of us are plenty capable of organizing a trip to the river without you; we're not exactly helpless."

"Miroku's right," agreed Kagome, "what's important is that _you_ can most easily find them and stop Kagura if need be."

The hanyou made a face, but even he couldn't argue with the logic – besides, even if he didn't care much for Kouga, he didn't particularly want to see any harm come to the wolf's cohorts.

"Fine," he simply shrugged, then added as a quick jab at injured demon's expense, "wouldn't want the wimpy wolf to go limping off on his own and get devoured by an enormous flesh-eating bird or something."

"Drop dead, mutt-face," called out the other, but the hanyou was already sprinting away in the direction Kouga had indicated earlier. Within several leaps and bounds he had completely vanished into the night.

Kagome stared absently after him for a few moments, her hand hovering halfway between her back pack and her lap. A course but gentle grip suddenly enveloped her fingers and the girl turned abruptly back to Kouga.

"Kagome, let me go with you; I need to find out what Kagura is planning as well."

The fifteen-year-old ran a sympathetic eye over the warrior, "Well, I don't suppose we can just leave you here; you can ride on Kirara's back if you'd like."

The prideful demon was less than ecstatic about the suggestion, but knew he was likely to heal much quicker if he didn't unnecessarily tax his damaged body at the moment. "I guess that would be okay…as long as I'm not a burden."

The girl grinned and turned to the cat in question; "What do you think, Kirara: is there any possibility you could manage to carry Kouga's incredible weight on your back for a little while?" The feline answered her with a lazy yawn-roar. Kagome looked back at him, "I think that means she doesn't mind."

"Very funny," Kouga rolled his eyes.

**Kagura could all but taste freedom** as she looked down on the darkened land from atop her feather. She spared her additional passengers a distasteful backward glance, but reminded herself that it was temporarily a necessary alliance. Soon she'd have the last precious element needed to cast her spell and then she could properly rid herself of the two nuisances. Until then, she'd have to tolerate the idiot wolf and dead priestess.

In the midst of her brooding, a chillingly familiar vibration slowly began to thrum into her ear on the wind. Saimyosho were nearby. Kagura swore viciously; if those hell-wasps found her in the company of these two she could kiss her life goodbye. Swerving so sharply to the right that Ginta had to grab her waist in order to keep from sliding off, the demoness shot in the opposite direction of the tell-tale buzzing. She spared only a moment to appreciate the usefulness of her dominion over currents of wind, and the sounds carried on them; how many times had it saved her before?

"Where are you going," gasped the wolf demon, struggling to regain his balance, "I know I didn't hide it in this direction!"

"Shut up," she snapped over her shoulder, "we're taking a little detour."

Behind her, the youth silently obeyed. Likewise, Kikiyou kept characteristically quiet. Kagura would just have to work around Naraku's spies – nothing she wasn't quite used to already.

'_It won't be long now,_' she assured herself for what seemed like the hundredth time, '_I _will _have my freedom…_'

Once she was certain the poisoned insects were far enough away, Naraku's wayward incarnation hastily circled back toward her original destination.

"Let us down here," announced Ginta as he crouched precariously between the two women. The crimson-eyed demon did so, deftly passing through the entanglement of think branches and landing them on the forest floor.

She turned bluntly to their guide: "Where now?"

Ginta straightened up slowly and glanced around to gather his bearings. "Um, I think it was this way," he replied with uncertainty.

"You only _think_," growled Kagura.

Kikiyou shouldered her arrows, turning a hard stare on the other woman, "What do you plan to do once you have this water? You still haven't explained your plan to escape Naraku's dominion."

"If you're so curious to find out, then watch and see," smirked the sorceress. She then turned once again to the wolf, "Now I have a question: why, all of a sudden, are you so eager to betray _your_ boss and lead me here?"

Ginta shot her a look over his shoulder as he took the party's lead, "Kagura, if what you're saying is true and you have a way of getting out from under Naraku, then you're certainly going to be fighting against him from now on – which would make you our ally. So what I'm doing isn't really a betrayal to Kouga."

The wind wielder's smirk returned, "I somehow doubt your fearless leader is going to see it in that way." Turning back around, Ginta couldn't help but quietly acknowledge her point, but it was a risk he was willing to take.

"The moment I sense something amiss in your motives, Kagura," the priestess spoke up from behind, "is the moment I will also cease to see it 'that way' – and I will personally put a halt to this recovery mission."

"Yeah, yeah," snorted the witch, silently trying to come up with some way to get rid of the annoying miko.

She looked back in front of her to see that the wolf ahead had come to a stop. Kagura glanced around expectantly, but could find no reason for the sudden halt. He appeared to be sniffing at something in the air. "What's the problem," she demanded.

"Nuh-nothing," he stammered. "Um actually, I believe I went more in this direction…" Ginta quickly cut away from the narrow path and practically dove into thick underbrush.

"What," cried a bewildered Kagura, as she and Kikiyou hurried to catch up.

"Yeah, it's this way all right – I'm sure of it!" The wolf demon's steps suddenly lurched into an outright bolt, and he all but tore through the dense foliage.

"Slow down," the sorceress shouted, falling further and further behind, but if anything the youth only increased his speed.

"Damn it," she yelled and hurled her wind blades none to carefully in front of the impeding plant life.

Kikiyou had already halted and now stared indifferently after Kagura's fruitless attempts, and then curiously back at the wolf's original path. Heading in the latter direction, it only took several more paces before she abruptly stumbled upon a rather large, freshly dug hole in the ground. Peering closer, she found it empty.

**Though Kagura did all in her power** (nearly cutting him down with her dance of blades more than once) the wily wolf still managed to keep just out of harm's reach. Even after he could no longer hear the angry screeches behind him, Ginta kept up his wild pace until he finally collapsed. He knew he must be utterly insane, but it had worked! Kagura might be very savvy while on her flying feather, but there were few who knew the depths of the woods and could maneuver them on foot as well as he himself could. Besides, once he'd caught _their_ scent on the path to his hiding place there had been no other option.

Beyond exhausted, Ginta quietly hunched himself into as small a form as possible and did his best to muffle his heavy breathing. He might yet be slaughtered, he'd pretty much resigned himself to this fact, but given the choice between death by Kagura or betraying his master, he'd take his chances with the witch any day!

**The mohawked demon jerked his head up** with a start. He realized he'd dozed off, as dawn was now slowly spreading across the early morning sky. With heavily-lidded eyes he turned to the sleeping girl curled into a small niche further into the cave. They'd agreed to take shifts keeping watch, but she'd been so exhausted after their grueling day that Hakkaku hadn't had the heart to wake her when it was her turn.

Tired and sore as he was he knew Rahne must be even more so. He was actually rather impressed with the young girl's stamina and determination throughout the previous day, and frankly he wasn't even certain he would have been able to muddle through it himself without her moral support.

Then, as if his thoughts had somehow disturbed her slumber, the redhead groaned and rolled over. She slowly sat up and rubbed her short, scruffy hair; the craggy cave floor had left red trails across her cheek which made Hakkaku immediately think of pathways and Ginta and many other things he didn't want to think of at the moment.

Yawning, she attempted to focus on him with puffy green eyes. "Wha', is it moornin' already?"

"Yup," he answered, stifling a yawn of his own.

"Hakkaku," exclaimed the girl, "why'd you let me sleep sae long – ye werenae supposed tae stay up all night!"

"Yeah, sorry," he rubbed his eyes, "I guess time just got away from me." When Rahne continued to scowl disbelievingly at him he changed the subject, "So where is the water?"

Reaching further back into the niche she occupied, the young Scot retrieved the tiny vial and held it up. "Now what should we do?"

"Now?" He gave her a tired smile, "I think we should probably get some breakfast."


	9. Chapter 9

**The spot had been visited** quite a few times throughout the day as best as he could tell from the criss-crossing paths that intersected at the torn up mound of fresh earth at his feet. The scents were intermingled and intermittent – making it difficult to decipher one from another had the nose concerned been less skilled than Inuyasha's. With just a little effort the half-demon soon determined that both of Kouga's lieutenants had visited the site at different times (possibly more than once) and so had the red-haired wolf girl and Kagura, however there was one particular scent that caught his attention and quickly made him forget everything else.

The smell of graveyard soil was so strong it stung his nose. Inuyasha did his best to ignore the sudden prickle of anticipation he always felt when he knew she was near by or he'd just missed her – and the aftertaste of guilt that inevitably followed. Reminding himself that he had more important things to worry about, he strode resolutely into the clearing.

With her back facing him, Kikiyou continued to gaze thoughtfully off into the distance as he approached. The boy stopped a few paces away from her and waited.

At last the woman leisurely turned to face him, "Well Inuyasha, something tells me you didn't come here expecting to find me."

**"Careful there," Sango warned** the wolf chief as Kirara maneuvered to land. Kouga did his best to guard his gored middle while holding onto the big cat beneath him. With a firm grasp, the demon slayer gently supported him from behind. Seated in the back, Kagome strained to see what was directly below them, but Kirara seemed to know where to go. Miroku remained the only one on foot, which made the girl wonder if he was able to see any better from his vantage point; at least he had Shippo's night vision to help him through any rough spots.

Presently, the group landed at the bank of a river followed soon after by Miroku and Shippo.

"So where is this so-called 'River Guardian'," inquired the young boy as they all gazed out over the dark depths.

"Something tells me we need to venture out further into the water," mused Sango.

"Whatever we do we must remember that we are dealing with a deity and approach with the utmost respect." Miroku slowly knelt and touched a finger to the smooth surface. As he spoke, the river abruptly responded to the monk's touch, churning exuberantly enough to start pulling the young man in by the arm.

"Miroku," exclaimed Sango as she snatched at his waist. Kagome scrambled over as well, grabbing his shoulder, but the water reached out of its bed and caught her around the ankle in a very solid grasp. Kagome found the watery tentacle impossibly strong as it dragged her steadily toward the center of the river.

"I've got you, Kagome," Someone's arms wrapped themselves firmly around her torso. Kouga jerked fervently against the angry liquid, his heels digging deep ruts into the slippery bank. Kagome could now barely keep her head above water – Miroku and Sango had already disappeared below the depths of the enormous whirlpool forming in the center of the river.

Overhead Kirara roared furiously while Shippo cried out from the shore. The big cat swooped down to grab Kagome's wrist in her mouth, but the current refused to let go. Soon all five were sucked deep into the funnel.

"Kirara, Kagome," Shippo bellowed each of his friend's names in turn from above the tempestuous river in his bubble form.

Without warning the waters immediately stilled, becoming completely serene once again. Shippo quickly transformed and dropped only to meet with a sheet of solid glistening ice. Pound on it as he did, nothing worked – not even his fox fire made a dent on the frozen river.

Far below the panicky young fox, the three humans and two demons found themselves swept downward and spewed out onto solid ground in a drenched and gasping heap.

"Where are we," marveled Sango as she sat up "Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah, I think so." Kagome stood and turned cautiously around in a circle, gawking at the yawning canopy of water drifting over their heads and surrounding them on all sides. A haze of liquid moonlight rippled over them like eerie torchlight. Belatedly she noticed what appeared to be a throne looming at the far end of the enormous hallway where they stood. A small stooped figure perched like a lonely spectre on the lofty seat.

Miroku was the first to tentatively approach, "Are you the River Guardian?"

The bent figure slowly and deliberately looked up to reveal the withered face of an ancient old man scowling back at the five.

"I am. State your business here," the old man demanded. His suspicious glare reminded Kagome slightly of her grandpa when he suspected she or Souta of messing around with his ceremonial relics.

Miroku bowed deeply. "We humbly wish to speak with you regarding the water that was recently taken from this river," answered the monk who was secretly disappointed to be meeting with a wrinkled and cantankerous water god as opposed to the beautiful water _goddess_ he'd hoped to find.

The old man seemed to bristle even more at the mention of his purloined water, "What do you know about anything taken from my river?"

"We know only that a certain demon enemy of ours obtained some enchanted water in a small vial, and we were told by a reliable source that it came from here," Miroku replied with growing confidence in his tone.

"Who told you that," the wrath of the tiny old man completely knocked the monk off his feet and into Sango as the irate deity suddenly flew to his feet with unexpected vitality. "Do you dare come here and mock me?" All around them the watery walls began to shiver and quake, threatening to collapse and engulf them at a moment's notice.

The holy man struggled quickly into a low bow, the others following his lead. "Please my lord, we mean you no insult! We only know that this particular wind sorceress is the servant of a very powerful demon who would use your talisman for evil purposes if he can!" The young man continued to bow repeatedly, his usual cool composure replaced with nearly panicky groveling, "Please I can't die – I have so many children left to father!"

"Miroku, you idiot," growled Sango.

"You don't understand," Kouga spoke up cautiously, "the lives of my clan are at stake."

"We had nothing to do with what happened," Kagome humbly added, "I promise!"

The river god seemed to calm slightly and the walls of water stopped rumbling. He eyed each one of them from under bushy white eyebrows as he spoke: "Exactly who are you people anyway?"

"Just a group of travelers brought together by the same goal – reform the Jewel of Four Souls and rid the world of Naraku's evil," the school girl replied. "Please tell us what Kagura wants with your magic."

Slowly the guardian sat back down on his throne and peered moodily up through the flowing depths of murky canopy arching gracefully over their heads, remaining that way for a long time. The others began shifting uncomfortably as they waited anxiously for a reply. At last old man spoke, "I couldn't tell you what that woman is planning, but she will come to no good end…_No one seduces this river god and gets away with it_!"

Simultaneously the group of humans and demons respective jaws dropped – "Seduced?"

**Inuyasha sprinted through the treetops**, his head still swimming with what Kikiyou had just told him. He didn't get far before his eye spotted something strange down below as he glanced to his right. Partially obscured by the shadows of early dawn, lay the unmistakable form of a body. Leaping down, he ran over for closer inspection – his hand ready at Tetsusaiga's hilt.

There curled fast asleep in the cleft of two large rocks lay a very familiar wolf demon.

The hanyou let out a small exasperated sigh, relaxing. "Hey you," he prodded the open-mouthed Ginta with his foot, "wake up, are you hurt?"

Immediately the wolf's eyes flew open and he grabbed the offending foot, sinking his teeth deep into the flesh.

Uttering a horrified scream, Inuyasha automatically reacted by slamming his fist hard upon the other's skull.

"Wha-wha-what?" the unfortunate and bewildered demon gasped, rubbing the large lump swelling on the top of his head, "Inuyasha, is that you?"

"Yeah it's me," roared the half-demon, hopping up and down on his one good foot.

"Oh, thank goodness," the other young man collapsed headlong with relief, "I thought I was dead for sure!"

"Well, don't rule that possibility out just yet," growled the white-haired boy as he gingerly stepped down on his wounded extremity. "Get your ass up and follow me; we've got Kouga, and still have to find the other two."

Ginta pulled himself stiffly to his feet. "You mean Hakkaku and Rahne?"

Inuyasha didn't answer, but took off running once again – albeit with a limp – and Ginta dutifully followed after. He hoped his brother was still safe.

**Rahne found that when** she stretched, every muscle in her limbs screamed in protest. She only prayed that today didn't hold much running or moving around in general for them, or Hakkaku might very well end up leaving _her_ in a ditch somewhere. The girl's thoughts immediately summoned a tattered and bloodied Kouga being circled by buzzards as he lay slumped in a deep pit with flies and decaying things all around.

She shuddered; it was an image very similar to what Reverend Craig had often described hell to be like – only in hell there would also be fire and demons with thorny whips. Rahne fleetingly wondered if _all_ demons actually went to hell – perhaps her belief system still needed a bit more redefining. The shock of discovering her mutantcy and joining Xavier's school, had more or less forced the werewolf to gradually relinquish the narrow beliefs that she'd been so staunchly weaned on. Regardless, she breathed a fervent prayer that Kouga was still alright. She reassured herself that if wolf demons were half as hearty as she'd witnessed so far, then he should be fine until they returned to get him.

Hakkaku was presently out finding their breakfast – even after getting no sleep the previous night! Rahne wondered where he found the reserve energy when she herself could barely move.

With a small groan Rahne attempted to straighten up only to knock her skull on the low cavern roof. The impact sent her plummeting back to the ground seeing stars and aching more than ever. She decided to just sit after that.

Presently, her eye was drawn to something sparkling in her peripheral vision. The girl reached over and plucked the delicate glass from its protective mud bed, and held it up for examination. How could such a seemingly harmless trinket possibly be so important to that demonic red-eyed woman? She opened the top and took a cautious sniff, as far as she could tell it was merely water inside. Was there something special about this water? Perhaps it was poisoned, though her wolven nose couldn't detect any. What then? Did she want to drink it?

Rahne's mind swam with possibilities as she crouched absently in the dankness. So absorbed was she in her musings that she didn't notice the approach of another body from outside the cave.

"Hey Rahne, are you ready to eat?"

The girl started at the sudden call, forgetting the low ceiling she once again nearly split her bruised cranium open on a sharp crag. This time she let out a shrill yelp, flinging the tiny glass bottle in her anguish. With numb horror she watched it in slow motion as it spun a graceful arch through the air and landed in a spray of a thousand tinkling shards at her feet.

Hakkaku's head instantly appeared in the entryway, a look of concern on his face. "What happened?"

Rahne's round green eyes continued to gape at the cave floor, a thin rivulet of blood trickled unnoticed from her short hair down her face to drip into a puddle. The demon quickly crossed over to her side clasping her by the shoulders, "Rahne, you're bleeding from the head; are you okay?"

Her gaze shifted incredulously up to him, "Wha? No ah'm no okay," she flung her arms toward the thousand pieces of glass strewn over the stone, "Ah'm sae stupid an' clumsy ah drapped th' bloody bottle, Hakkaku! Th' water's spilt everywhere!"

"You did what," he gasped, crouching immediately down to inspect the already damp cave floor. Sure enough the elusive water was already collecting into the muddy puddles at their feet. Hakkaku was speechless. Above him, the girl began to sniffle, "s-s-sorry!" Another drop of crimson splattered into the shallow pool before him, leisurely swirling in elegant patterns over his reflection's ashen features.

Without warning, the face staring back at him slowly morphed into a shapeless blob – swirling along with Rahne's blood in a hypnotic spiral. Leisurely the blob reformed itself into something resembling figures moving about in a miniature world as if he were seeing far away on the other side of a dingy window.

Hakkaku gasped, tugging urgently on the cuff of the weeping girl's boot. "Rahne, take a look at this, quick!"

"Eh? What is it," she dropped down beside him in confusion, scanning the spilt liquid as if somehow she could will the pieces whole again.

Together they watched as the foggy picture shifted more into focus. The Scots girl let out a small gasp and grabbed the demon's arm, "Och, Hakkaku tha-that's…" But the young man was already rubbing his eyes in disbelief at the watery scene: A field of white gradually came into focus with several heavily bundled children cavorting and throwing a powdery substance at one another. Nearby, a younger yet unmistakable Rahne stood shoveling the walk of a churchyard. The small girl paused in her labor long enough to gaze wistfully at the sleders and merrymakers beyond the iron gate before the doors of the church swung open to reveal a scowling bearded man dressed in black. Even as the younger Rahne's head snapped toward the man, the entire vision suddenly dissolved back into the black water.

"What was that," breathed the wolf demon.

The girl shook her head disbelievingly, "that was my past!" Her attention shot back to the dark puddle and she leaned in closer with expectation.

"Why would Kagura want water that shows you your past," mused Hakkaku. Cautiously, he dipped his fingertip into the puddle. Once again a picture began to ripple along the surface.

The first thing that came into view was a monstrous bird-like creature swooping away with what looked like a woman in its talons. A small boy ran along below crying desperately after the woman, his arms flailing uselessly toward the sky. A man dressed in animal pelts and armor ran up behind the child and snatched him up – carrying him away kicking and screaming from the scene. Beside her, Rahne could feel Hakkaku stiffen, but before she could speak a new image swirled into take its place.

A brief flash of Kagura sailing through the air on her feather rippled across the surface. An image of Kagome holding a letter Rahne recognized as the one she'd written to her headmaster, Magneto, and sent home with the Japanese girl. Upon the envelope "return to sender" was stamped in red ink. Another ripple later and the red-head was staring at an older version of herself, her stomach suspiciously swollen. She sat in the shade of a blossoming cherry tree, glancing up as a smiling Hakkaku approached and knelt beside her. Again the scene shifted to a close up of Kagura lying stunned and motionless beside a wilted sapling.

All at once the visions completely ceased, leaving the black water still and lifeless. For a moment neither spoke, both silently trying to process the torrent of split-second images. At last Hakkaku turned back to the teenager, "What do you suppose that was all about?"

The young Scots woman continued staring edgily into the pool, "Th' only thing like that that ah've ever seen is when Illyana would use sorcery an' make a scrying pool to see things tha' were happenin' in other places – sometimes even things in th' future or the past. Maybe this water does the same thing."

"Hmm, the future," the wolf mused to himself, then solicitously to Rahne: "How's your head?"

"Killin' me," she replied honestly.

They sat in silence for a moment longer before the girl tentatively spoke up. "Hakkaku, that boy that we saw – that wis you wasn't it?"

The young man nodded slowly, "yeah, that was me."

"Wha happened – I mean, d'ye mind my asking?"

Hakkaku shrugged, self-consciously fiddling with his hands, "our tribe used to have a lot of trouble with these certain demons called birds of paradise; every now and then they would pick one of us off to devour. When I was still a cub, my mother was taken by one of those things."

"Oh," said Rahne at a loss for words and silently swallowing the lump forming in her throat, "m'sorry."

"What about you," asked the demon, quickly changing the subject, "was that your father we saw?"

Rahne thought back to the earlier vision and sighed heavily, "Nae, that wasnae my father – just my caretaker back when I wis still a ward of th' church." At the other's blank stare, the girl elaborated, "Y'see m'mother died deliverin' me an' I dinnae ken m'father at all…the Reverend Craig raised me 'til I wis thirteen, though he certainly resented bein' saddled wi' the burden. As ye could see, he didnae like me at all – I cannae remember when he didn't have that scowl on his face."

"But you don't have to live with him anymore do you," asked the lieutenant.

"Nae, fortunately a good woman adopted me. Thanks to her I go to a special school where I've met other people like me an' learned t'use m'powers."

The young man's encouraging grin showed faintly in the darkness, "then I wouldn't waste too much time worrying about what some bitter old man thinks. Besides, he was probably just jealous of you."

"Wha? Jealous, eh," snorted Rahne, amused despite the absurdity of her friend's statement.

"Of course," he insisted, "who wouldn't be jealous of being able to become a wolf? I feel sorry for anyone who isn't one – it's great."

'_Yeah,'_ Rhane almost added before she caught herself. Instead she merely gave him a playful shove and quickly pretended to study the stalagmites at her feet.

While they sat in awkward silence, something suddenly hit the wherewolf like a smack in the face, she whirled back to the mohawked demon, "Wait a minute; what aboot tha' other thing we saw!"

"What other thing?"

"Ye know, th' one wi' you an' me…"

"Oh that!" Hakkaku was grateful that the dim cave hid his reddening cheeks, "well it sort of looked like your might have been ahh…"

"Pregnant," finished Rahne, "I wis pregnant wasn't I? An' ye were there, which means Ah ne'er get home! My letter that Kagome mailed – no one ever got it." Suddenly the full connotations of the image registered with her as the girl gasped at what should have been the most obvious question of all: "_Why was I pregnant_?"

Hakkaku was spared having to give a response as a soft thud sounded just outside the cave mouth. Quickly the two hunkered down, scarcely daring to breathe as bare feet and the hem of a colorful kimono came into view from without.


	10. Chapter 10

"**Rahne, get back into the cave as far as you can go,"** she heard Hakkaku's barely audible, yet fierce whisper. The teenager grasped his wrist and shook her head stubbornly to indicate that she wasn't intending to go anywhere.

"Rahne," he hissed again, clasping her on the shoulders and gazing hard into her eyes. '_Please_', he formed the words with his lips and gave her an insistent shove away from the cavern's mouth. The girl attempted once again to protest, but Hakkaku soundlessly pushed her back.

Reluctantly Rahne crept away, heading deeper into the cave. Finding a small niche she crammed herself into it and strained to listen for what her friend was doing.

"I know where you're hiding; get out here before I collapse this entire cave on top of you," shouted the indignant witch.

"Alright, I give up; I'm here – I'm coming," Rahne heard the wolf demon call out. There was the scuffing sound of the boy negotiating his way around crags until at last she could hear the light tread of his feet as they met the grass. The werewolf inched forward a bit more in order to follow the muffled conversation outside.

"So, where's the little red shrew gone to," the woman was now demanding in that smirking voice of hers.

"She isn't here," replied the young man dismissively, "I'm by myself."

"Really," she drawled skeptically, "for both of your sakes I hope you aren't planning any kind of stupid tricks; just hurry up and give me what I came for."

"Ah, right," Rahne thought she detected a slight crack in Hakkaku's otherwise even voice once she'd shifted into a further wolven state, "I'm afraid I don't have _that _anymore either."

"Still singing that tired old tune are you," scoffed the sorceress, "And I suppose you gave it to a seafaring monkey on his way to the mainland too. How stupid do you think I am?"

"But it's the truth –"

"I've had it with all this; I'm killing you now…"

"No, wait!"

Rahne's pulse throbbed like a drum – this was all her fault! Now Hakkaku was about to pay the ultimate price for her – she knew she didn't deserve it. The Scottish girl would not allow him to put himself in this position merely for her sake! She would take on the evil cow herself! Instantly her muscles bunched in preparation to dash for the entrance, but before either she or Kagura could make any crucial move, the wolf demon blurted his desperate confession.

"The water spilled; the vial broke and it spilled, I…_ack_!"

Hakkaku's explanation was abruptly cut off by a sharp swiping noise, "You lying bastard – you've probably sent your hairy little friend off with it!"

"No," croaked the other around an obstructed windpipe, "No, I dropped it just inside the cave; the shards are still all over the place!"

Rahne had to strain to hear what the horrid woman said next, so menacingly quiet had her voice become it sounded like a hissing serpent ready to strike. "Whether you're telling me the actual truth or just trying to protect her, you do realize that I now have no further use for you or any qualms about chopping you into little pieces?"

The wolf demon made several guttural noises, but seemed unable to form a reply.

Now in her almost fully wolf form Rahne's desire to attack mounted ever higher. Mustering up every bit of restraint she possessed, the wolf struggled to hold in the growl that rose to her throat as saliva dripped from her gritted fangs. Resist as she might, she could feel the beast growing stronger by the moment and wondered how much longer she'd be able to safely contain it.

"On the other hand," mused the sorceress after a pause, "I may just have a use for you after all."

After several sharp rustles and a heavy thud followed by the burst of Hakkaku's ragged gasping, Kagura's familiar scent suddenly filled the wolf-girl's nostrils. With an iron will Rahne managed to shift just enough for her human side to finally gain the upper hand at the last moment. The girl withdrew to her niche (if only for the moment) to watch the red-eyed woman swoop in.

Crouching ankle deep in sludge, she scarcely dared to breathe as she watched Kagura strain to make out the cave floor. The wind sorceress carefully stretched out a searching hand in the darkness until she'd plucked a small shard of glass from a puddle. Uttering a sharp noise of disgust, the young woman tossed the sliver away and stood back up.

With a single motion, the demon took out her fan and raised it above her head, shouting "dance of the dragon!" A massive torrent of wind blasted from the instrument. As the changeling watched she saw a vortex form around the area of the shattered bottle. Droplets rose from the ground into the miniature cyclone and pooled together until a small sphere slowly formed in its center. Rahne had the impression of a tiny planet being born and she would have thought it quite beautiful had the circumstances been different. As it was, the girl focused hard on the strange ball, trying to determine its substance until, abruptly, the sorceress turned and swept out of the cave as hastily as she'd entered.

"Here," the Scot now heard the other woman snap – presumably to Hakkaku, "drink this!"

Seizing her opportunity, Rahne soundlessly leapt after her, stopping at the entrance just in time to see the wolf demon nervously gulping down a dubious brownish liquid from his hands. _'The spilt water'_, she realized belatedly. What would it do to her friend?

She continued to crouch unnoticed in the rocky entrance as Kagura once again reached for the feather which she stored in her hair and tossed it at the stunned Hakkaku.

"Get on," ordered the demoness.

"Wait," croaked the wolf, backing away from the now enlarged feather as if it were the chariot of death itself, "what are you planning to do with me?"

The woman arched a single haughty brow over her blood-colored eye and shot him a look that said the answer to his question should have been obvious: "Well since you so stupidly broke the container in the first place, it's only fair that you should hold onto my water for a little while until I need to get it back again."

Hakkaku's own eyes widened in apparent bemusement. "You mean you still want it even after it's been…"

The raven-haired witch cut his thought off with a malevolent little chortle, "Oh don't worry – you won't have it for that long. It's going to come out of you alright, though probably not in the way you had in mind."

"Then how will you –" Rahne could see the wolf demon suddenly flinch in realization as his look darted toward the fan that Kagura twiddled absently at her side. "So you're going to slice me open instead," he stated with an understanding which the Scottish girl's still largely canine brain couldn't quite grasp.

"Hm," beamed the woman, like a teacher pleasantly surprised by the observation of a rather slow pupil, "don't try anything stupid, though; I can always maim you to the point where you can't run away."

"Yeah I know," Hakkaku replied flatly, "but I also know you're about to make a big mistake if you try to go through with this."

Kagura's crimson eyes narrowed dangerously. Without flinching, the wolf demon stared evenly back at her. "I saw your future in the water after it spilled; you were lying dead beside a sapling."

Rahne's sharp eyes caught the expression of sudden horror that passed over the other girl's features before it quickly changed to rage and she swept her fan in an arc across her chest, releasing several leathal crescents at the lieutenant.

The wolf-girl's yelp of concern was drowned by her friend's own anguished scream.

"**Wait a minute," Sango's ponytail swished** to the side as she cocked her head in bewilderment at the scowling old man before them, "did you just say that she _seduced _you?"

"That evil wind-riding temptress? Yes, of course she seduced me; I may be old, but I'm not dead! Even I was not immune to her wily feminine charms – after all it gets rather lonely down here after several millennia you know!"

An awkward silence followed as no one quite seemed to know what to say to this, and so the River Lord continued.

"She came to visit me on several occasions – pretending she was falling in love with me. She was especially fascinated by my sacred river – always inquiring about its magical properties. She seemed so taken with my underwater palace that I naturally felt a bit flattered. I was so taken with her I even fashioned a crystal vial filled with enchanted water for her that she could use in whatever way she wished.

"However, something in my divine nature told me she wasn't to be trusted no mater how pleasant her company was. I sensed the deceptiveness of her actions – how she mistook me for a dottering old fool that she could easily manipulate. Before we last parted, she promised to return once she'd used my gift to escape her evil father." The gristled-looking man finished with a contemptuous snort that sent fish on either side of the watery barrier darting away in alarm. "I realized she was trying to use me – _me_ a god! So I decided to put a curse on the water I gave her in order that any spell she might attempt for selfish gain will backfire on her!"

**Shippo paced the edge** of the river, barely suppressed panic welling inside him. What could be happening to the others at this moment? Were they even still alive? How was he ever going to get under all that ice in order to save them?

Feeling dizzy with dread the small boy dropped to the ground, clutching his head and fighting back the hot tears. He couldn't loose it now; he had to stay calm! His friends had to be alive and he would get to them somehow…

Suddenly, as if from the force of his very thoughts, the frozen river gave a deep and belligerent roar. Ice crackled and shattered into myriads of glittering crystals which swept against the banks in tumultuous waves. Green eyes wide in amazement, the fox watched the individual pieces smoothly form themselves back together into a single liquid mass.

Moments later a large feline head burst from the surface of the water with a loud roar.

"Kirara," shouted Shippo, springing to his feet. The cat shot out of the river and through the air, Sango's left arm gripped her pet's neck while her right held firmly to Miroku's hand. Kagome likewise clung to the demon's back and Kouga brought up the rear grasping her tail. Hovering just above the ground, Kirara gingerly deposited her wet and gasping cargo onto the bank.

The overjoyed fox child immediately leapt into Kagome's arms. "You guys survived! What happened to you anyway?"

"I'm still trying to figure that out myself," muttered Miroku, wringing out his soaked robes.

"Do you really think what the River God told us was true," spoke up Sango after taking a moment to catch her breath, "if Kagura is going to be the cause of her own undoing maybe we don't need to interfere after all."

"No way," objected Kouga, "I don't want her taking my men down with her – and besides, _I _ought to be the one that causes her undoing!"

Perched atop Kagome's shoulder, Shippo smacked his own forehead in exasperation; "For crying out loud, who cares how it happens so long as she's gone!"

"Isn't it interesting, though, how Kagura told the Guardian she wanted to escape her father," Kagome pointed out pensively.

"That's right," frowned Miroku, "it almost sounded as if she were referring to Naraku."

"Free from Naraku," the wolf demon scoffed, "the only reason she's anything is because of that bastard – why would she ever want to be 'free' of him?"

"Keh, shows how much you know," called out a familiar voice that made the blue-eyed wolf's teeth grind together. Whipping his head around sharply, Kouga beheld the loud-mouthed mutt smirking down at him from a boulder further up the crumbling bank. With one light leap, the dog hanyou stood before them.

"Inuyasha!"

"Hey boss," shouted a second voice as Ginta scrabbled quickly down after Inuyasha.

Kouga, startled at the sudden appearance of his lost lieutenant, immediately made to lunge forward only to collapse back to the ground with a sharp intake of breath as he grabbed his middle.

"Take care, Kouga," Kagome exclaimed as she knelt down to steady him.

The gesture did not go unnoticed by the silver-haired boy who pulled a disgusted face before snorting at his rival: "yeah, you're so delicate we wouldn't want you falling and breaking any more of those fragile wolf bones of yours."

The demon shot him a death glare, "you mean like how I'm gonna break my foot off after shoving it all the way up your –"

"_Inuyasha_," scolded Kagome angrily, cutting off the rest of Kouga's statement.

"_What are you squawking at me for_? He's the one getting all violent and graphic, not me!" The outraged half-demon stabbed a clawed finger at the offender as both males stared murderously at one another.

"Uh, Kouga," Ginta knelt anxiously down beside his chief, "there's something important we need to tell all of you."

"That's right," added Inuyasha, temporarily disregarding his fight with Kouga. The others gathered around them expectantly, "it turns out Hakkaku and Rahne took that damn bottle from its hiding place a while back and made themselves a prime target for Kagura. If we don't hurry and get to them first things could get very messy."


End file.
